The Lindenwood men's volleyball team (6-12, 3-7 MIVA) suffered a tough five set loss at No. 10 McKendree (14-5, 9-1 MIVA) on Wednesday night in Lebanon, Ill.

MATCH OVERVIEW
The Lions won the race to 10 with a kill from Carter Stenmark. Another termination from Stenmark put Lindenwood ahead, 15-13. The Black and Gold pushed their lead to 19-16 after a kill from Jacob Christopher which forced a McKendree timeout. The Lions were able to hang on and take the first set 25-22. Stenmark led the way with six kills, and Lindenwood hit .448 overall

McKendree jumped out to a 9-5 lead in the second set and Lindenwood called timeout. The Bearcats continued to lead throughout the stanza, but the Lions pulled within one at 16-15 after an ace from Brendan Louthain, and he tied it at 16 with a kill, which forced a McKendree timeout. A block from Amir Grant and Stenmark extended the lead to 20-17. Louthain eventually finished off the set at 25-22 with a kill, giving the Lions a 2-0 lead in the match.

In the third set, the Bearcats got out to an early 9-4 advantage. McKendree continued to lead, and back-to-back aces pushed the lead to 17-11 and Lindenwood called timeout. The Bearcats took full control of the set late and won it 25-20.

The Bearcats led 13-10 in the fourth frame and continued to hold a slim margin in the later stages of the set and 22-18 and Lindenwood needed a timeout. The Lions kept battling, however and back-to-back kills from Grant and Louthain made the score 24-22. McKendree closed the set out at 25-22 and moved the match to a fifth and deciding set.

The fifth set was a back and forth one, but McKendree pulled ahead 8-6 before the teams switched sides. The Lions were able to tie the stanza, 9-9 with back-to-back kills from Owen Walsh and Louthain, but McKendree responded with the next two points to go up 11-9 which forced a Lindenwood timeout. A block by the Bearcats put them up 13-10. The Black and Gold couldn't close the gap and dropped the fifth set 15-11 and the match 3-2.

MATCH LEADERS
Zach Solomon (53 assists, six digs)
Jacob Christopher (17 kills, six digs)
Amir Grant (eight kills, .800 hit %, two blocks)

UP NEXT
The Lions return home on Saturday for a matchup with Purdue Fort Wayne. First serve is set for 1:00 p.m.