The Lindenwood men's volleyball team (4-8, 1-5 MIVA) picked up its first conference win of the season after defeating Purdue Fort Wayne (6-8, 1-6 MIVA), 3-1 on Friday night in Fort Wayne, Ind.
GAME OVERVIEW
The Lions jumped out to a 7-2 lead following a big block by
Jacob Christopher and
Amir Grant. The Mastodons battled back to get within one, but Lindenwood responded and went up 15-11 at the media timeout after another block from Christopher and
Owen Walsh. Purdue Fort Wayne tied the set at 15 coming out of the brake, but Lindenwood went on a 5-0 run, capped off by a Walsh ace to go up 20-15. Lindenwood took the set 25-16 and hit .412, while Christopher had five kills.
The second set was all Purdue Fort Wayne as the Mastodons took an 8-2 lead which forced a Lindenwood timeout. PFW continued to roll in the second set, taking it 25-12 and knotting the match at 1-1.
Lindenwood won the race to 10 in the third set, going up 10-5 after a
Brendan Louthain kill. The Lions kept building onto the lead with a
Carter Stenmark termination to grab a 16-9 advantage. Purdue Fort Wayne battled back, getting within five at 21-16, which forced a Lindenwood timeout. The Lions settled back down and finished off the set at 25-18 to take a 2-1 lead in the match
The two teams went back-and-forth throughout the fourth set with neither team having more than a three-point lead. Purdue Fort Wayne went up 21-19 late in the set and Lindenwood called timeout. A block by Louthain and Grant tied things up at 22 and Stenmark followed up with an ace to give Lindenwood the lead. The Lions had a couple match points at 24-22, but the Mastodons wouldn't go away and eventually tied it up. The Black and Gold hung on for a 26-24 fourth set win thanks to a big block block from Louthain and Walsh.
GAME LEADERS
Jacob Christopher (14 kills, .458 hit %, three digs)
Owen Walsh (six kills, 2.5 total blocks, .556 hit %)
Amir Grant (eight kills, 2.0 total blocks, .583 hit %)
UP NEXT
The Lions will face No. 11 Ball State tomorrow at 4:00 p.m. CT in Muncie, Ind.
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