Contact: Taiah Gallisath, Sports Information Graduate Assistant, tkgallisath@noctrl.edu

KENOSHA, Wis. (Apr. 1, 2023) - A historical match on multiple fronts, the sixth-ranked North Central College men's volleyball program swept the No. 9 Carthage College Firebirds 3-0 at Tarble Arena on Saturday afternoon to claim the program's first-ever College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW) regular season title.

The Cardinals move to a 19-3, 9-0 CCIW record on the year with an 11-game winning streak while the Firebirds fall to 15-6 and 7-2 in CCIW play. For the third time this season, Jared Moser has posted 22 kills in a single contest, setting a new program record for kills in a three-set match and is second for overall single-match kills. Moser also picked up a service ace and had five digs on the day. Will Padgett recorded 28 assists in his starting debut, while Luke Schmidt led the charge defensively with three blocks and Parker Nelson led all Cardinals with seven digs. 

Jeremy Cardenas got the Cardinals rolling in the opening set as he scored the first and last points of a five-point run off a kill and a block assist with Ben Williams to put North Central up 5-1. Carthage scored three points to take a 12-9 lead over the Cardinals. Padgett capped off a North Central three-point run to regain the lead at 16-15 before four straight points extended their efforts to 21-17. Utilizing one-point possessions for the remainder of the set, North Central claimed the set one win 25-22.

The second set saw nine tied scores, but the Cardinals never lost their footing as they moved to a 14-11 lead thanks to a service ace by Padgett. Back-to-back kills by Moser put North Central up 21-19 as they traded the next eight points with the Firebirds until Tyler Donovan entered the conversation scoring the winning point to take set two, 25-23.

With 17 tied scores and seven lead changes, the Cardinals had a hard-fought battle for the third and final set. Carthage had the most extended possession in the third set, with three-straight points to take the 19-18 lead before handing two points to North Central at the hands of Firebird errors. Back-to-back kills by Moser and Donovan put the Cardinals up 22-20 before Moser shut down the competition with a kill and a service ace to win the final set 25-22. 

North Central looks to complete its conference regular season on Saturday, April 8 as they host the North Park University Vikings for the Cardinals' Senior Day. The match is set for 3 p.m. inside Gregory Arena. 

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