VIRGINIA BEACH (Jan. 26) – On the opening day of the VWU Invitational, the Trojans produced a sweep in a pair of matches after registering a 3-1 win over Eastern Mennonite before delivering a 3-1 victory against the host Virginia Wesleyan on Friday.
With the victories, the University of Mount Olive men's volleyball team improves to 4-1 after making its second trip to Virginia this season.
Against Eastern Mennonite (4-2) of the Continental Volleyball Conference (CVC), Mount Olive posted a 3-1 victory (25-19, 25-18, 17-25, 25-16) after tallying 44 kills and eight service aces in its opening match of the event. Senior
Justin Gregory recorded a season-high 13 kills on a .387 hitting percentage with nine digs and a pair of blocks. Senior
Hayden Frear also reached double-figures with 12 kills while adding two service aces and six digs. Junior
Holden Maryott totaled eight kills on a .583 clip and recorded two blocks over four sets played. Sophomore
Jackson Lahey directed the offense with a season-high 35 assists while pacing the team with three blocks in the win.
Sophomore
Kory Grant matched a career-high with 10 digs and delivered three service aces against the Royals. Gregory registered nine digs while sophomore
Mert Asma contributed seven digs and two assists.
Against Virginia Wesleyan (1-5) in its first season as a program, the Trojans produced a season-high 52 kills and 9.5 total blocks in a 3-1 win (24-26, 25-22, 25-13, 25-23) on Friday evening. Senior
Chance Gallardo recorded a career-high 13 kills while adding one ace, four blocks, and nine digs. Freshman
Matthew Ekberg totaled eight kills on a .500 hitting percentage with two service aces, three blocks, and two digs. Fellow freshman
Maksim Kazanov also registered eight kills on an impressive .615 clip with two aces and four blocks. Lahey guided the offense with 33 assists while tallying two aces, three blocks, and four digs.
Gallardo and Grant paced the UMO defense with nine digs each and Asma totaled six digs in four sets played.
The Trojans return to the court on Saturday, Jan. 27, for a pair of matches against St. Andrews and Randolph-Macon at the VWU Invitational, starting at 10 a.m.
