Contact: Taiah Gallisath, Sports Information Graduate Assistant, 630-637-5302

ROCK ISLAND, Ill. (Mar. 23, 2022) - The fourth-ranked North Central College men's volleyball team continues to rewrite the history books this season as Wednesday night's 3-1 win over College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW) opponent Augustana College tied the program record for most wins in a single season.

The Cardinals were off and running at the start of set one, finding themselves up 7-3 thanks to kills by Nathan Jones and Jake Miller. The Vikings managed a four-point run to bring the score back to seven-all but fell short as North Central utilized three consecutive errors by the Vikings and kills by Jared Moser and Ben Williams, and a service ace by Matt Nealon to further their lead 15-11. The Cardinals took set one 25-19.

With the score idling between two points for most of set two, North Central found its opportunity to extend its lead with a five-point run to bring the score to 16-12. THe Vikings inched their way back, but not in time for Luke Schmidt's kill that preceded two-consecutive kills by Austin Scott, bringing the score to 21-17. Another kill each by Scott and Gabrial Aguado helped solidify the set two win, 25-22.

Set three saw the Vikings get off to a staggering 6-1 lead, while the Cardinals were held to one-point possessions most of the set. North Central finally found a four-point run in set three but not early enough to prevent the Vikings taking the set 25-18.

Entering set four with a vengeance, the Cardinals boosted their .200 hitting percentage from set three to a .424 thanks to Williams' seven kills and Moser's six in set four. North Central came out hot with a six-point run to lead 16-7 before a pair of three and four point possessions halted the Vikings as the Cardinals won 25-13 to take the match victory in four sets. 

Williams led the Cardinals in three categories with 11 kills, three service aces, and eight digs. Moser and Scott each tallied nine kills. Nealon led with 20 assists while Tyler Donovan had his share with 16.

The Vikings were led by Aiden Bond with 11 kills followed by Aidan Bolen with seven. Matthew Degnan was the Vikings main setter with 21 assists and tied with Max Sellers for digs with seven each.

The Cardinals host a rematch with CCIW foe, the third-ranked Carthage College Firebirds on Saturday at 3 p.m. inside Gregory Arena. 

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