BELMONT, N.C. (Feb. 14) – In one of their best all-around performances of the season, the Trojans produced a dominant 3-0 sweep (25-22, 25-17, 25-15) over Belmont Abbey on the road in Conference Carolinas play on Friday night.
With the win, the University of Mount Olive men's volleyball team collects a fifth-straight win to improve to 7-2 overall with a 3-0 mark in league play. The Trojans snapped a five-game skid against the Crusaders in the series while earning their first sweep since 2022. Meanwhile, Belmont Abbey drops to 4-5 this season behind a 2-1 record in conference action.
Senior
Tate Sandvig posted a season-high 17 kills on a .367 hitting percentage with one block and nine digs. Junior
Kory Grant reached double-figures with 10 kills on a .346 clip while adding one ace, two blocks, and four digs. Junior
Constantinos Iacovou contributed 10 kills on a staggering .800 hitting percentage with two blocks. Fellow junior
Jackson Lahey guided the offense with 44 assists, three aces, two kills, three blocks, and three digs.
Freshman
Luca Colombo led the defensive effort with 10 digs and three assists.
In the first set, Mount Olive built an early 4-2 advantage behind a pair of kills by Iacovou before the Crusaders countered to take a 9-8 edge. The Trojans responded with four of the next five points to hold a 12-10 lead, but Belmont Abbey answered back to tie the contest, 15-15. UMO pushed ahead with a 5-1 run before the Crusaders grabbed a 22-21 advantage late. The Trojans countered with four consecutive points to take the first set by a 25-22 margin.
Mount Olive established an 8-5 lead with a trio of kills by Sandvig before the sides traded the next 11 points. With UMO holding a 13-11 edge, the Trojans scored six straight points to build a 19-11 advantage before Belmont Abbey closed the gap to 19-14. Mount Olive registered six of the final nine points to seal the set, 25-17.
In the third set, the Trojans held a 10-6 advantage with three different players recording a kill before going on a 6-2 run to take a significant 16-8 lead. The sides exchanged points down the stretch before Lahey delivered back-to-back aces to secure the sweep, 25-15.
Mount Olive travels to face North Greenville tomorrow, Saturday, Feb. 15, in Conference Carolinas play at 2 p.m.
