Contact: Anna Fox, Sports Information Graduate Assistant, amfox@noctrl.edu
 
BLOOMINGTON, Ill. (Feb. 18, 2025) - The North Central College men's volleyball team overpowered Illinois Wesleyan University in their College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin season opener in Shirk Center. The Cardinals swept the Titans in a swift 3-0 win.
 
The first set saw 11 tied scores and two lead changes. Ultimately, North Central and Illinois Wesleyan found themselves tied at 15, and that was when the Cardinals started to gain momentum. The Cardinals capitalized on a Titan error and a kill by Tyler Donovan before dropping one point (17-16). North Central took a 7-1 run with service aces from Jeffrey McEachern and PJ Vaughn (24-18). Donovan connected with Chris Mactal for the kill to win the set 25-18.
 
The teams kept the second set close, with North Central taking a two-point lead (9-7). At the service line, Carson Steinbach helped the Cardinals to eight consecutive points, including a service ace (17-7). Illinois Wesleyan could not make up the distance, and the set ended with a kill from Austin Scott (25-14).
 
In the third set, North Central absolutely ripped any momentum that Illinois Wesleyan had. After dropping the first point, the Cardinals earned five consecutive points, led by McEachern at the service line (5-1). The Titans earned their second as a result of a Cardinal error before North Central took another five-point run (10-2). After trading off a few points, the Cardinals went on a 9-1 run (23-7). Cooper Lundal ended the one-hour match with a kill.
 
Steinbach led the Cardinals with a season-high of 15 kills. Additionally, Steinbach tallied two service aces. Scott continues to be big at the net, recording three blocks on the night. Donovan tallied 26 assists, while Danny Smithers earned eight digs.
 
The No. 18 Cardinals will host the No. 12 Loras College Duhawks at 3 p.m., Saturday, Feb. 18., in Gregory Arena.
 
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