Contact: Anna Fox, Sports Information Graduate Assistant, amfox@noctrl.edu
 
CHICAGO, Ill. (Mar. 27, 2024) - The North Central College men's volleyball team fell short to North Park in a heartbreaking five-set match Wednesday night in the North Park Gymnasium.
 
The teams kept the first set tight with 12 tied scores and one lead change. The Cardinals started the match with a 6-1 lead before the Vikings earned five consecutive points to tie the set (6-6). After trading off points, North Central kept their lead with kills from Jared Moser and Cooper Lundal (13-10). The Vikings tied the set again, and the teams continued to trade points. Tied at 23-23, North Park earned two straight points to take the set (25-23).
 
The Cardinals started hot in the second set, earning seven consecutive points (7-0). North Central kept the edge over North Park, and at 19-14, the Cardinals strengthened their lead by earning four straight points (22-14). Holding a six-point lead, Jakub Ochal gave North Central the set off a service ace (25-17).
 
The third set saw ten tied scores and two lead changes. Tied at 3-3, Caelan Koth gave North Central the lead by a kill before the Cardinals took another point from an attack error from the Vikings (5-3). After several ties, North Central earned five consecutive points, including a service ace by Austin Scott (17-13). The Cardinals took a 6-1 rally, led by Eggert at the service line (23-15). The Vikings went on a 4-1 rally before Scott put an end to the set with a kill (25-19).
 
In the fourth set, the teams took turns earning two-point rallies, but North Central took the lead (4-2). The Cardinals kept their lead and Eggert delivered another fiery serve to tally another service ace (7-4). North Park found a boost of energy that led them to a 9-1 rally (14-9). North Central chipped away at the Vikings lead, Connor Davis and BK Bartlett brought the Cardinals within two points of North Park (23-21). North Park tied the match at two sets a piece off an attack error by North Central (25-21).
 
North Park started the fifth set off hot by taking the first four points (4-0). However, North Central kept their heads up high and continued to chip away at the Vikings' score. A service ace from Jeffrey McEachern brought the Cardinals within two points of the Vikings lead (11-9). Moser recorded his second service ace of the night to keep North Central in the match (11-13). Tied 14-14, North Park capitalized on two Cardinal errors to take the set and get the win (16-14).
 
Eggert tallied a career-high of 39 assists and 11 digs. Koth also recorded a career-high of five blocks and 11 kills. Moser led the Cardinal offense with 23 kills on the night. Meanwhile, on the defensive side, Carson Skalbeck tallied a career-high of 26 digs.
 
North Central will host the No. 13 University of California, Santa Cruz at 5 pm Saturday, Mar. 30, inside Gregory Arena.
 
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