THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. — Cal Lutheran men's volleyball swept their competition on Saturday as the Kingsmen defeated No. 11 North Central 25-19, 25-23, 26-24, and Illinois Tech 25-21, 25-23, 25-20, on Saturday.
The Kingsmen went 3-1 at the CLU Invitational Tournament and have won five of their last six matches. Four of those wins have been sweeps.
Against North Central, The Kingsmen took set one on the strength of their defense at the net. Middle hitter Borys Horiuk and setter Taylor Marks teamed up for 4 blocks in a five-point span to give Cal Lutheran a 13-6 lead. The Kingsmen held the Cardinals to a .057 hitting percentage with 9 total blocks en route to a 25-19 win.
Set two saw the Cardinals out dig the Kingsmen 13-7 and out kill them 15-13. This kept the set tight all the way to 23-23 when a North Central hitting error gave Cal Lutheran set point. Outside hitter Ben Weber finished the set with a kill for the 25-23 win. The difference in the set amounted to the Kingsmen's smart hitting, having only two errors.
Smart set distribution was a highlight of set three with four different Kingsmen getting 3 kills each. A three-point North Central run tied the score at 19-19 and then another late run made the score 24-22. Two Cardinal errors and kills from Jake Tucker and Logan Marks helped Cal Lutheran fight off two set points and take the win 26-24.
L. Marks led the Kingsmen with nine kills while Weber and Jake Tucker each added eight. Horiuk led the team with 12.5 total points on seven kills and 5.5 blocks.
The straight sets win set Cal Lutheran up with momentum heading into the second match of the day against Illinois Tech.
Versus Illinois Tech, Cal Lutheran made it a nine-set winning streak with a sweep of the Scarlet Hawks.
The Kingsmen would hold the lead in set one wire-to-wire as T. Marks opened the match with a four-point serving run. Smart hitting and strong blocking kept Cal Lutheran in control. The Kingsmen's six total errors to the Scarlet Hawk's 15 gave Cal Lutheran the 25-21 set win.
Set two was marred by 12 serving errors between the two teams, but it was the Kingsmen block that came through in the end. Down 23-22, Horiuk combined with Tucker for a game tying block and then followed that by teaming with L. Marks for another block to give the Kingsmen the lead. A L. Marks kill finished the set at 25-23.
The Cal Lutheran offense exploded in the third set for 17 kills compared to nine for the Scarlet Hawks. Already ahead 19-18, the Kingsmen scored six of the last eight points to take a firm grasp and finish the set 25-20.
Tucker led the offense with 11 kills while Weber and Marks added eight and seven, respectively.
The Kingsmen will be heading on the road against Aurora on Thursday at 5:00 p.m. to kick off a four match swing in Chicago, Ill.
Box Score: CLU 3, No. 11 NC 0; CLU 3, IIT 0
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