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March 29, 2024 10:56 am

Trojans set school record in sweep at Morehouse

ATLANTA – The Trojans set a new school record with 21 service aces on Jan. 27 in a 3-0 sweep over Morehouse in non-conference action by scores of 25-9, 25-17, 25-12.

With the win, the University of Mount Olive men’s volleyball team improved to 3-1 this season after returning to the court for the first time in a week. It marked the first meeting between the sides, as Morehouse enters its second season as a program. Meanwhile, the Maroon Tigers fell to 0-1 in their season-opener while competing in the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.

Mount Olive set a new school record with 21 service aces in the win after 10 different players registered at least one ace. The previous mark was 20 aces set on March 10, 2012, against Wells College. Junior Tom Klotzbuecher had four aces and sophomore Holden Maryott had three while six players tallied two aces on Friday.

Junior Chance Gallardo paced the team with seven kills and four digs. Maryott finished right behind with six kills while freshman Kory Grant also tallied six kills and four digs. Klotzbuecher recorded five kills and two digs in a pair of sets, and freshman Constantinos Iacovou delivered four kills Junior Jack Yerxa directed the offense with 22 assists and freshman Jackson Lahey added six assists.

The Trojans established an early 1-0 advantage after tallying 11 kills with eight aces to win the first set, 25-9. UMO produced an 8-3 lead following kills from three different players before scoring six of the next seven points to stretch the advantage to 14-4. Both sides exchanged the next four points before the Trojans mounted a 9-3 run behind four service aces to win the opening set.

In the second set, the Maroon Tigers took an early 7-6 lead after capitalizing on three service errors before UMO countered with a 5-1 rally to claim an 11-8 advantage. Morehouse scored four of the following five points to tie the set at 12, but Mount Olive responded with a massive 10-2 run with four aces to take a comfortable 22-14 lead. The Maroon Tigers battled back with three consecutive points before UMO finished with three unanswered points to win.

Mount Olive completed the 3-0 sweep in the third set after posting 16 kills. The Trojans held a slight 7-5 advantage to open the set before delivering four straight points to take an 11-5 lead. Both teams exchanged the following seven points before a 5-1 run from UMO stretched the advantage to 23-10 with a pair of kills from Klotzbuecher and Grant. Mount Olive eventually closed out the match with a kill by Iacovou to win, 25-12.

— From University of Mount Olive Athletics