KENOSHA – The Lakeland College men's volleyball team went the distance in one match and was competitive in another but ultimately lost twice Saturday afternoon at a triangular hosted by Carthage College.
The Muskies took No. 5-ranked Carthage to five sets in their opening match before falling 19-25, 26-24, 25-21, 25-27, 15-11. Lakeland then challenged No. 7 UC Santa Cruz early before going down in three sets, 25-22, 25-22, 25-17.
The Muskies (8-6 overall) nearly chopped down their fourth ranked opponent of the season in the first match, but dropped their second Midwest Collegiate Volleyball League match of the season to slip to 3-2 in the MCVL. Lakeland was tied 9-9 in the fifth set, but three attack errors at the end helped the Red Men (6-3 overall, 4-0 MCVL).
Alec Redlich (
Sr.-Wauwatosa, Wis.) had 21 kills,
Tim Robbins (
So.-Wheaton, Ill.) finished with 13 kills and
Casey Bolda (
So.-Honolulu, Hawaii) and
Matt Stolz (
So.-Wauwatosa, Wis.) both added nine kills each.
Cole Aiazzi (
Sr.-Yerington, Nev.) finished with 15 digs and
Jordan Smith (
Sr.-Channahon, Ill.) had 54 assists.
The Muskies finished with the better hitting percentage of the two teams, hitting .252 to Carthage's .238, but Lakeland also finished with 21 service errors to just 14 for the hosts.
The Muskies played well to start the second match before running out of gas late against the Banana Slugs of UC Santa Cruz (12-3 overall).
Lakeland trailed by seven late in the first set before closing within 24-22 before UC Santa Cruz closed out the set. The second set was one that got away from the Muskies, who held a 17-11 lead until the Banana Slugs scored seven straight to take the lead and control of the match.
Redlich had 11 kills against UC Santa Cruz, Aiazzi had 16 digs and Smith added 31 assists as well as six kills. The Muskies hit a respectable .262 for the match with 39 kills and just 11 errors, but also had just 4.5 blocks while the Banana Slugs hit .315 with 43 kills and just nine errors.
Lakeland faces another tall task on Sunday when it hosts a triangular at the Woltzen Gymnasium. The Muskies will host Loras College as well as Stevens Institute of Technology (N.J.), the top-ranked team in NCAA Division III. Lakeland will meet Loras at 11 a.m. and Stevens at 3 p.m., with Loras and Stevens also meeting at 1 p.m.
