MOUNT OLIVE (Jan. 31) – Behind a season-high 11 service aces on Friday night, the University of Mount Olive men's volleyball team collected a 3-1 victory (25-14, 25-15, 20-25, 25-16) over Edward Waters in the home opener at Kornegay Arena.
With the win, the Trojans improve to 3-2 overall after playing their initial four matches of the 2025 season on the road. Mount Olive will face first-year program Catawba on Tuesday, Feb. 4, before opening Conference Carolinas play at home over the weekend. Meanwhile, the Tigers drop to 0-7 this season while holding a 0-3 record against Conference Carolinas opponents.
Senior
Holden Maryott led the Trojan offense with nine kills on a .500 hitting percentage with four blocks, two aces, and two digs. Sophomore
Matthew Ekberg registered eight kills on a .421 clip with three service aces, five blocks (two solo), and four digs. Junior
Kory Grant contributed six kills, one ace, one block, and three digs on Friday. Fellow junior
Jackson Lahey guided the offense with 29 assists, three service aces, five blocks, and six digs.
Freshman
Luca Colombo directed the defensive effort with eight digs against the Tigers. At the net, Mount Olive finished with 10.5 blocks as a team, the second time the squad reached double-figures this season.
In the first set, Mount Olive took an early 5-0 advantage with a pair of service aces from Lahey before stretching to 10-3 following a block at the net. The Tigers tallied two of the next three points, but the Trojans mounted a 7-2 run to extend the lead to 18-7. With the UMO ahead 21-11, the sides exchanged the final seven points, including two kills by Ekberg, to win the set by a 25-14 margin.
Mount Olive established a 5-3 advantage in the second set before Edward Waters trimmed the deficit to 6-6. The Trojan offense went on a 10-4 run, highlighted by a trio of kills by sophomore
Maksim Kazanov to hold a 16-10 edge. UMO managed to maintain its lead down the stretch, as
Kory Grant blasted a kill to capture a 25-15 win.
In the third set, the Tigers grabbed a 3-0 edge before Mount Olive responded to take an 8-6 lead behind a pair of kills by freshman
Wyatt Jones. Edward Waters scored seven of the next nine points to regain the lead at 13-10. The Trojans tied the set at 16-16, but the Tigers scored four unanswered points before eventually avoiding the sweep with a 25-20 victory.
UMO leaped out to a 10-4 advantage in the fourth after capitalizing on five errors by EWU. The Tigers managed to close the gap to 16-12, but Mount Olive scored five consecutive points to take a significant 21-12 lead. After exchanging seven points, Grant sealed the win for the Trojans with a kill, 25-16.
Mount Olive will travel to face Catawba on Tuesday, Feb. 4 in non-conference play at 7 p.m.
