ROCK ISLAND -- The Augustana Vikings men's volleyball team earned its second sweep in as many contests on Saturday, defeating the visiting Concordia-Wisconsin Falcons at home by a score of 3-0.
After the Falcons grabbed the first two points of the game, neither team saw a lead of more than a point until the Vikings overcame a 10-9 deficit with four scores in a row. Concordia hung around for a few rallies, cutting the game back down to a point at 14-13, but Augie responded with another scoring run of six straight to pull away for good. The visitors made one final push to get within two at 24-22, but the Vikings notched the 25-22 first-set victory thanks to a service error on the following play.
Another back-and-forth frame ensued, with the two teams trading rally wins and fighting through five ties before Augie broke away from an 18-18 deadlock with a 5-0 scoring outburst. During the run, the Vikings forced four attack errors from the Falcons, with two of those points coming via blocks from
Ty Heater,
Ben Schultz, and
Garrett McNelis. Schultz clinched the set victory for the Vikings with a kill on the 25th point to make it a 2-0 match lead.
The third set was all Augustana as the team grabbed the first four points of the game. Concordia got within two points shortly after at 5-3, but never got that close again the rest of the way as the Vikings cruised to a 12-point match-clinching win. Augie strung together another five-point scoring run to move a 15-10 cushion up to 10 points before later grabbing the final three points to close things out. Back-to-back block assists from both Heater and
Sean Carlson served as the final points for the Vikings.
As a team, Augustana hit .346 on the afternoon while holding Concordia to just a .053 mark.
Aidan Bolen was the team leader in kills with 14, while
Zach Moreano notched 11. Bolen also finished with a team-best .667 hitting percentage, while Carlson and Heater ended with three blocks apiece.
With the win, the Vikings now sit at 2-0 on the season. The team will be back in action on Thursday when they host the Edgewood Eagles.
