MOUNT OLIVE (Feb. 24) – Sophomore
Kory Grant delivered a career-high 18 kills on Saturday afternoon, as the University of Mount Olive men's volleyball team earned a 3-1 victory over Emmanuel in Conference Carolinas play at Kornegay Arena.
With the win, the Trojans earned a weekend sweep and improve to 10-3 overall behind a 4-2 record in league action. Mount Olive is tied for third in the conference standings with Erksine, while Belmont Abbey and North Greenville hold 5-1 marks. Meanwhile, the Lions fall to 5-9 this season with a 2-4 record in conference play.
Grant finished with a game-high 18 kills on a staggering .552 hitting percentage with three services and two blocks. Following the weekend, he ranks second on the team with 98 kills while averaging 3.04 points per set.
Senior
Hayden Frear reached double-digit kills with 11 on a .381 clip, while the trio of junior
Holden Maryott, sophomore
Constantinos Iacovou, and senior
Chance Gallardo all tallied seven kills in the win. Sophomore
Jackson Lahey led the offense with 49 assists while adding seven digs.
On the defensive side, sophomore libero
Mert Asma registered a season-high 11 digs and Maryott protected the net with four blocks.
Emmanuel established an early 1-0 advantage in the match after totaling 13 kills with zero errors in the opening set. The Trojans built an 8-3 edge following six unanswered points, including a pair of aces by Grant, before the Lions eventually tied the contest at 12-12. UMO regained the lead and held a 19-17 edge late in the set, but Emmanuel mounted a 7-0 run to take a 24-19 advantage. The Trojans countered with back-to-back points before the Lions escaped with a 25-21 win.
In the second set, both sides registered double-digit kills while boasting .400-plus hitting percentages. Mount Olive managed to take an 11-8 lead following kills by Grant and Gallardo before the teams exchanged the next 10 points. With UMO leading 16-13, the Lions rallied by scoring seven of the following eight points to grab a 20-17 lead. UMO responded with an 8-3 run to take the second set, 25-23.
The Trojans held an early 7-5 edge to begin the third set before registering a 7-1 run to take a 14-6 advantage with Iacovou totaling two kills. Emmanuel answered back with consecutive points, but Mount Olive scored six of the next eight points to stretch the lead to 20-10. The Lions managed to cut the deficit to 24-16, but a service error sealed the set for the Trojans, 25-16.
Mount Olive completed the victory in the fourth set by registering 14 kills on a .333 hitting percentage. The Trojans leaped ahead by a 10-5 margin with three different players recording a kill before the sides traded the next four points. Emmanuel went on a 5-1 rally to capture the lead, but UMO quickly jumped ahead by a 22-19 margin late in the set. With UMO ahead 24-23, Iacovou sealed the win with a kill, 25-23.
Mount Olive is idle for the week before returning to action on Friday, March 1, when it hosts Lees-McRae in league play at 7 p.m.
