Adam Miracle had 18 kills and Jack Tutty recorded kills on the final two points of the match as third-seeded and two-time defending champion Mount Olive defeated No. 2 seed Limestone 25-22, 25-17, 17-25, 26-24 in the first round of the 2012 Conference Carolinas Men's Volleyball Tournament Sunday at Gaffney, S.C. The Trojans will travel to top-seeded Pfeiffer Wednesday for the championship match.

Mount Olive (17-13) built a two-set lead, but Limestone (14-11) won the third set to stay in the match. The Trojans fell behind 3-1 in the fourth set before Tutty's second kill of the set broke an 8-8 tie. Mount Olive never trailed the rest of the way, but the Trojans had to fight off a series of comebacks.

Kills by Miracle and Lukas Hoelzl helped Mount Olive build a 17-13 lead. Limestone got as close as two points before kills by Miracle and Alex Rivero moved the Trojans within two points of advancing with a 23-19 advantage.

After a side out on a Trojan attack error, Conference Carolinas Co-Player of the Year Scott Warren helped spark a Limestone rally. A kill by Warren and a solo block by Andrew Pile highlighted Warren's service run as the Saints tied the set. After a Mount Olive timeout, a service error led to a Trojan side out. Limestone saved a match point as Andrew Miller's kill tied the set 24-24.

The two teams engaged in a long rally before Tutty's attack led to a Limestone overpass. Tutty capitalized with a kill in the middle to set up match point. Hoelzl served and dug a Limestone attack. Trojan setter Jackson Metichecchia played the ball to Tutty, who sealed the win with his 10th kill of the match and his fourth in the final set. Miracle also had four kills in the fourth set, while John Nunns recorded five of his nine kills in the final set.

The two teams traded side outs throughout the first set, which saw 13 ties and five lead changes. Tutty's kill broke a 22-22 tie as Mount Olive won the final three points to win the first set. The Trojans trailed 11-9 in the second set before kills by Miracle and Alex Rivero highlighted a 4-0 run to put Mount Olive ahead to stay. Miracle capped a set-ending 8-2 run with kills on the final two points as the Trojans took a two-set lead.

The third set was all Limestone as the Saints scored five of the first six points and never trailed. Kills by Tutty and Rivero pulled Mount Olive within 6-5, but a pair of kills by Warren highlighted a 7-2 Limestone run as the Saints pulled away to force a fourth set.

Hoelzl finished with 12 kills, while Rivero added 10 kills as Mount Olive came within one kill of placing five players in double figures for the second straight match. Tutty compiled a .643 hitting percentage with only one error in 14 attempts. Metichecchia finished with 49 assists and a team-high three blocks. Libero Dan Arnold led all players with 15 digs.

Warren had a match-high 19 kills to go with six blocks for Limestone, while Kevin Hart added 10 kills. Pile recorded 44 assists and added five kills and no errors in 11 attempts. Curtis Van Grinsven led all players with seven blocks as the Saints recorded 13.0 blocks as a team.

Mount Olive defeated Limestone in four sets April 7 at Kornegay Arena in the two teams' regular season finale. Limestone won the first two meetings this season.

Pfeiffer advanced with a four-set win over No. 4 seed Lees-McRae, winning the first two sets and coming from behind in the fourth set.

Mount Olive won the 2010 and 2011 Conference Carolinas Men's Volleyball Championships, both title match wins coming at Kornegay Arena. This year marks the first time the tournament expanded from two to four teams. Pfeiffer is making its first-ever appearance in the championship match.

Match time Wednesday is 7 p.m. at Misenheimer, N.C.