FORT WAYNE, Ind. -- The Indiana Tech men's volleyball team opened its WHAC title defense with a gritty 3-2 win over visiting Siena Heights University (Mich.) on Friday night at the Schaefer Center. Tech needed all five sets to overturn a 2-1 deficit and even its season record at 2-2. 

Tech opened the match on the front foot offensively, after a sluggish attacking effort overall in Iowa last weekend. An early surge at the service line from Raekwon Rogers forced three Saint attacking errors, set up a Peter Demoulin kill, and ended with an ace, to give Tech an early 8-2 lead. The Warriors enjoyed another three-point mini run later in the set to lead 17-8, before taking the 1-0 match lead with a Ryan Griffel kill on the final point. The Warriors hit .318 in the first set and produced 11 kills.

SHU rebounded to take set two 25-18, on the back of .500 hitting. The Warriors held a slim 3-2 lead early, but the Saints went on an 11-3 run to lead 13-6. Tech would never get closer than four points the rest of the game. The Saints cooled off to .259 in set three, but the Orange & Black attack dipped as well, hitting just .208 with six errors in the frame, as SHE took a 2-1 lead with a 25-22 win.

The Warriors regrouped to take set four 25-22, setting up an explosive fifth set. Three kills from Dylan Poore opened up a lead for the Warriors, while a heady kill from Brandon Jones put Tech on the brink at 13-10. The final two points came from Saint errors giving the hosts a thrilling 3-2 win to start conference play.

Griffel led Tech with 12 kills while Mason Milan added 11. Brandon Jones set up the attack with a season-high 43 assists.

Tech headed south to Kentucky early Saturday for a top-10 matchup with Menlo College on a neutral court at Georgetown College. The Warriors and GC close out the weekend with a Sunday matinee in Georgetown, Ky.