Men’s Volleyball Splits Doubleheader, Picking up a Win over North Park After Falling to MSOE

MILWAUKEE, WI – Wittenberg Men's Volleyball took on some tough competition in a tri-match hosted by Milwaukee School of Engineering (MSOE) aon Saturday, Jan. 31, at the Kern Center, splitting matches in the doubleheader on the day.

The Tigers fell in a back-and-forth contest in match one against the host team, MSOE. The Raiders dealt Wittenberg a 3-1 loss by set scores of 25-18, 23-25, 20-25, and 23-25, outhitting the Tigers .295 to .250. MSOE, now 3-2 on the season, has a 3-1 edge in the all-time series against Wittenberg after the Tigers came away the victors last year, 3-2.

Only two players made it to double figures in kills for the Tigers in Michael Yurk  (Indianapolis, IN / Bishop Chatard) with a team-high 15 and Reese Monnin (Xenia, OH / Carroll) with 12.

The Tigers played in back-to-back matches, and in number two against North Park, Wittenberg was on the warpath, winning in three-straight sets, 25-20, 25-14, and 25-9.

Putting together a gem of an offensive attack, the Tigers dominated North Park, getting key blocks and kills from Yurk and Eli Halverson (Hamilton, OH / Badin), along with Monnin. Halverson had an incredible match, leading the way with 11 kills on 15 total attacks for a hitting percentage of .733. He also scored 15 points, landed a service ace, picked up a team-leading eight digs, and registered two blocks. Yurk added nine kills on 20 total attacks, had six digs, and a block for 10.5 points. Monnin and Zach Newton (Morgantown, IN / Franklin Community) each added seven kills.

Seniors Yurk and Halverson both set career records in kills and blocks in this week's matches. Yurk went over the 900-mark for kills in his career at 934 and is at 100 career blocks. Halverson went over 800 kills with 829 total and over 100 in blocks with 101 for his career at Witt.

With the split, the Tigers improve to 5-2 on the season. Wittenberg is now 2-1 in the series against North Park, which fell to 1-5 overall on the season.

Team Leaders vs. MSOE

• Michael Yurk  (Indianapolis, IN / Bishop Chatard) led the team in kills with 15 on 37 total attacks. He also had 18 points, two solo blocks, a service ace, and five digs.
• Reese Monnin (Xenia, OH / Carroll) added 12 kills on 22 total attacks and tallied 12 points.
• Jake Downs (Cincinnati, OH / Milford) had a team-high 12 digs.
• Gavin Hagerty (Fishers, IN / Fishers) led the team in assists with 22, while Carson Hill (Liberty Township, OH / Lakota East) picked up 14.

Team Comparison vs. MSOE

• Wittenberg had 48 kills on 128 total attacks for a .250 hitting percentage, along with 40 assists, one service ace, 38 digs, and 4.0 total blocks.
• MSOE had 62 kills on 132 total attacks for a .295 hitting percentage, along with 61 assists, four service aces, 51 digs, and 5.0 total blocks.

Team Leaders vs. North Park

• Eli Halverson (Hamilton, OH / Badin) led the team in kills with 11. Yurk added nine kills, and Monnin and Newton registered seven each. 
• Gavin Hagerty (Fishers, IN / Fishers) and Carson Hill (Liberty Township, OH / Lakota East) each led the team in assists with 22 and 13, respectively.
• Greg Efaw (Hilliard, OH / Davidson) led the team in service aces with two. He also added two blocks, as did Newton.
• Halverson led the team in digs with eight, while Yurk and Downs each tallied six. 

Team Comparison vs. North Park

• Wittenberg finished with 39 kills on 77 total attacks for a .403 hitting percentage. The Tigers also had 37 assists, five service aces, 33 digs, and eight blocks.
• North Park landed 22 kills on 86 total attacks for a .035 hitting percentage. The Vikings also had 22 assists, five service aces, 24 digs, and four blocks.

Up Next

Wittenberg will host the Springfield Men's Volleyball Showcase on Feb. 6-7. The Tigers will play Bridgewater College at 5 p.m. and No. 4-ranked Southern Virginia at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 6, then play No. 14-ranked Loras at 1 p.m. and Illinois Tech at 6 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 7. 

Written by: Cindy Holbrook