Trojans suffer setback versus Belmont Abbey

MOUNT OLIVE – The University of Mount Olive men’s volleyball team had its three-match winning streak snapped in a 3-1 loss on March 26 against Belmont Abbey in Conference Conferences play at Kornegay Arena by scores of 25-23, 25-18, 14-25, 25-17.

With the loss, the Trojans drop to 8-13 overall with a 4-7 mark in conference action. Mount Olive has won three of its previous four matches and will return to league play next weekend with a pair of road games. Meanwhile, the Crusaders extended their five-game winning streak and improved to 13-12 and 7-4 in conference action.

Sophomore Tate Sandvig led the team with 16 kills while adding seven blocks. Junior Hayden Frear produced his third-consecutive kill/dig double-double after recording 10 kills and 10 digs. Senior Pedro Gonzalez tallied seven kills with two aces and three blocks. Freshman Jackson Lahey directed the offensive effort with an assist/dig double-double after posting 35 assists and 10 digs.

The Trojans featured three players with double-digit digs, led by senior libero Trevor Treser with 11. At the net, Mount Olive totaled nine team blocks with freshman Constantine’s Iacovou pacing the team with six (two solos).

In the opening set, Belmont Abbey established a 6-2 edge before four unanswered kills by UMO, including a pair from Frear, tied the contest 6-6. Both sides traded points late in the first set before the Crusaders scored four of five points to pull ahead by a 24-21 margin. The Trojans responded with back-to-back points, but fell on a Belmont Abbey kill, 25-23.

The Crusaders held control in the second set a majority of the way after taking an early 12-8 advantage. Mount Olive managed to close the gap to 13-11 before an 8-3 run by Belmont Abbey stretched the lead to 21-14. UMO was unable to trim the deficit, as the Crusaders secured the set, 25-18.

The Trojans pulled ahead in the third set by a 10-5 margin after registering five straight points with kills by Gonzalez and Sandvig. Belmont Abbey countered with consecutive points, but Mount Olive followed with an 8-0 run to extend the advantage to 18-7. The sides exchanged points down the stretch of the set before clinching the win on a service error, 25-14.

In the fourth set, UMO jumped out to a 6-3 lead with kills from four players, but the Crusaders answered with a 7-1 rally to take a 10-7 edge. The Trojans eventually cut the deficit to 15-14 following a block before Belmont Abbey mounted a 10-3 run to seal the win, 25-17.

— From University of Mount Olive Athletics