Grand Rapids, Mich. – Men's Volleyball hosted hometown rival Aquinas Saints in their 12
th ever matchup. The Golden Eagles have won the past five matchups in the fixture but after two sets the Saints held a 2-0 set lead. A true team effort saw Cornerstone complete the reverse sweep and take the final three sets to end their short losing streak. Men's Volleyball will look to continue their momentum into a tough matchup against #8 Lourdes on Friday, March 20
th at 7:00 p.m. inside Mol Arena.
Game Recap – Cornerstone – 0 Aquinas – 3 (21-25, 16-25, 25-18, 25-17, 0-0)
First Set: Cornerstone – 21 Aquinas – 25
- The match started off steady for both teams as it was all square at 3-3 early.
- The visitors continued to play steady as the errors added up for the Golden Eagles as Cornerstone was forced into a timeout down 11-6.
- Matthew True used the timeout well with back-to-back kills to get Cornerstone a little closer to the Saints.
- The Saints continued to find success through their leading attacker on the season in Jayden Sturdevant as found big swings continue to find the floor leading 16-12.
- The Golden Eagles fell behind early and could never close the gap as Aquinas finished a steady first set winning 25-21.
Second Set: Cornerstone – 16 Aquinas – 25
- The Golden Eagles came out of the break with energy early as Ethan Walker attacked and secured the first point of the set, but the Saints responded with a block and service ace to gain a 2-1 lead early.
- The Saints found their swings continue to find the floor as they doubled the Golden Eagles score at 6-3 in the second set.
- The momentum stayed in the visitors' hands as they forced another timeout from Cornerstone who trailed 11-5 feeling like déjà vu from set one.
- The Saints went on another run to take a 14-7 lead over the Golden Eagles threatening to take a 2-0 set lead if the Golden Eagles could not find an answer.
- Kyle Kuebler and JeQuarri Shannon combined for back-to-back blocks as Cornerstone looked to inch their way back into the set down 17-12.
- Right when Cornerstone found some momentum the Saints were able to find the answer with strong defending leading them to a 20-13 lead.
- Cornerstone called their second timeout of the set at the 23-16 mark as Aquinas only needed two more points to claim the second set win.
- The Saints commanded the floor and took the two points needed to walk away with the massive lead inside Mol Arena.
Third Set: Cornerstone – 25 Aquinas – 18
- Patrick Burke and Ethan Walker started the third set well for the home squad as they kept pace early all tied at 2-2.
- The Golden Eagles continued to fight and used the momentum to take a 5-2 advantage with Patrick Burke leading the attacking front.
- Mol Arena helped the Golden Eagles find their spirit as they led 9-4 with everything going the way of the home squad.
- The story flip flopped in the third set as Aquinas was forced into the early timeout at 11-5 as Cornerstone looked to close out their first set win.
- Josiah Reif got in on the action as he found his first kill of the match as Cornerstone continued to pile on the lead.
- Ethan Walker also added to his strong showing with back-to-back kills to give CU a 15-7 lead.
- The Golden Eagles went back and forth down the stretch, but they held a 20-15 lead closing in on the end of the third set.
- Matthew True capped off the third set with a swing to send the match into the fourth with CU trailing 2-1 in the match.
Fourth Set: Cornerstone – 25 Aquinas – 17
- The story of the match continued to start the fourth set with it close early as Cornerstone led 4-3 to start.
- JeQuarri Shannon went back-to-back at the net with kills to bring Cornerstone to a 7-3 lead looking to stretch this game into one final set.
- The Saints turned the set around fast with a five-point run to take an 8-7 lead stunning the Golden Eagles.
- The Golden Eagles took advantage of the Saints errors as they led 14-10 in the fourth set.
- Patrick Burke added another service ace and kill in the set to give Cornerstone the 18-12 lead as Cornerstone could smell a fifth set brewing.
- Cornerstone took a 20-15 advantage late in the set which was set up by a picture-perfect Andrew Galanes assist to Matthew True as Aquinas was forced to think things over.
- The Golden Eagles comeback was in full motion as they secured a fifth with the Saints off a stellar set performance.
Fifth Set: Cornerstone – 0 Aquinas – 0
- The Saints held an early 3-2 lead in the set taking advantage of a pair of errors.
- Aquinas followed it up with a massive block to add another point in this final set.
- The Golden Eagles found a 4-4 tie through Ethan Walker steady the nerves moving through the set.
- This back-and-forth set was kept alive with a massive Patrick Burke kill and a solo Ethan Walker block as the game was 8-7 in favor of the Golden Eagles with the team's switching sides.
- Matthew True secured a killer attack to give Cornerstone a 10-8 lead and force Aquinas into their first timeout of the fifth set as the Golden Eagles were in the driver seat to bring the victory home.
- The Golden Eagles front line secured another pair of kills as they were just two points away from the improbable five set comeback.
- The Saints refused to quit in this contest as they went on a run and forced CU to think over the final point with the game at 14-12 in favor of Cornerstone.
- Ethan Walker
By The Numbers:
30/18/12 –
Andrew Galanes was a machine on the floor collecting 30 assists, 18 digs, and 12 kills in the match.
12 –
Matthew True led the Golden Eagles in the attack with 12 kills in the contest.
11/1 –
Ethan Walker also commanded the front line for the Golden Eagles as he secured 11 kills and one block in the match.
What's Next?
Men's Volleyball prepares for another WHAC showdown inside Mol Arena against #8 Lourdes on Friday, March 20
th at 7:00 p.m.
Volleyball Contact:
Mason Young
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