Men's Volleyball completes reverse sweep of Barton

WILSON, N.C. – One point away from being swept, the Catawba College men's volleyball team pulled a reverse card to win the next three sets in a 3-2 triumph at Barton on Tuesday night.

TEAM STATS

- Catawba (4-3) out-killed the Bulldogs (4-4) 59-46 on a slightly superior hitting percentage of .265 compared to Barton's .257

- The hosts had the upper hand in service, dropping in two fewer aces (7-5) but were more accurate overall at a .842-.750 success rate margin

- The Catawba Indians were cleaner in the reception game with a .941 percentage, besting the .907 clip posted by Barton

- Barton had a narrow edge in the blocking category, making eight blocks against the Catawba Indians' seven

INDIVIDUAL STATS

- Eli Zdonek set a season high in kills for the third straight match with 21 strikes on a .439 hitting percentage while collecting four digs and three blocks defensively

- Trevor Phillips blasted 18 kills and a career-high four service aces, flirting with a double-double using a season-best nine digs

- Cam Reeder picked up the first double-double of his career with 12 kills and 11 digs, also delivering an ace

- Kristian Smith dished out 55 assists, notching a strong .447 setting percentage, in addition to two blocks, three digs, one ace, and one kill

- Max Adkisson dug out 14 attacks, setting a career high and his third double-digit dig total of the season

- Jacob Brown leapt to make four blocks (one solo) as the Columbia, S.C. product also had five kills

HOW IT HAPPENED

First Set

- The Bulldogs used blocks to collect four of their first nine points in a neck-and-neck start

- Kills by Brown and Zdonek rivaled two strikes and two aces for Barton, who arrived at the media timeout with a 15-10 advantage

- Barton continued to extend its lead, burning through two Catawba timeouts before reaching a nine-point gap

- Zdonek and Reeder logged two kills apiece late, but the Bulldogs successfully closed it out in 25-15 fashion

Second Set

- Brown had a hand in a pair of early blocks, helping the Catawba Indians take a 4-1 edge before Barton gradually drew even at 7-7

- The hitting of Jack Sandahl and Jake Adams helped the hosts build their advantage to 20-14

- Phillips came out of Catawba's final timeout swinging, delivering kills on two of the next three rallies

- Despite a Zdonek-Brown stop and a couple of darts from the blue and white's outsides, Barton secured the set on Ryan Geraci's fourth kill of the stanza for a 25-20 decision

Third Set

- Catawba opened the frame in its favor, but again the Bulldogs stormed back to knot the score at 7-all

- Back-to-back kills from Phillips followed by three strikes in quick succession from Zdonek were balanced out by Lawson Hink and Ben Wiechert blasts, tying the set six straight times

- Following a Wyatt Eastin block to spur the media timeout, Phillips chalked up consecutive aces for a three-point lead that evaporated as a result of Catawba miscues and Barton kills

- Adams got a kill to reach match point at 24-23, but an errant Bulldog attack and two Zdonek darts allowed Catawba to avoid being blanked

Fourth Set

- The Catawba Indians parlayed their set victory into a momentum shift that began with a 7-3 lead early in the fourth stanza

- Barton stayed within striking distance, however, as Catawba alternated kill-error for a short period until the miscue bug bit the Bulldogs around the media break

- Up by six, Catawba continued to find paydirt as Reeder and Phillips connected on aces to bump the score to 23-14 before Zdonek used two kills in the final three rallies to even the match at 2-2

Fifth Set

- Barton started the fifth set with a 4-2 edge that featured a pair of strikes by Hink, quickly forcing a Catawba timeout

- A service error and kills from Reeder and Brown shifted the lead in the visitors' favor as the Bulldogs opted for a break to regroup

- Three Phillips darts helped give Catawba a four-point advantage that Barton sliced in half, making it an 11-9 margin when the blue and white used their final timeout

- Phillips resumed play with a blast and Smith pummeled a surprise kill before two more Barton miscues finalized the reverse sweep, lifting Catawba to its first winning record

UP NEXT

Catawba wraps up its in-state road trip on Thursday, Jan. 30 at Queens University of Charlotte. First serve is scheduled for 6 p.m. at Curry Arena.