SPRINGFIELD, Ohio—Wittenberg men's volleyball opened up their second campaign as a varsity sport with the second annual Jim Coleman Invitational. Wittenberg alongside Division II Lincoln Memorial and NAIA Cincinnati Christian University, welcomed a field of Division III talent that included Southern Virginia, Penn State-Altoona, Hilbert and Mount Saint Joseph to Pam Evans Smith Arena. Wittenberg rounded out the weekend going 3-1, with their lone match loss coming to Penn State-Altoona in the final match of the Tournament.
Coleman was one of the founders of the Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (MIVA) in 1961, a league that now features some of the top NCAA Division I intercollegiate men's programs in the country. Wittenberg competed in the MIVA in 1961 and 1962 before Coleman moved on to the first of several NCAA Division I college coaching positions."
TOURNAMENT NOTES
- The Tigers opened up tournament play with back-to-back 3-0 wins on Friday night against HIlbert and Lincoln Memorial to kick off the festivities.
- After dropping the first set on Saturday to Southern Virginia, Wittenberg managed to come roaring back and handle the Knights 3-1.
- The final match of the evening, as well as the tournament, featured the Tigers and the Lions of Penn State-Altoona, while the Tigers ran out of gas at the end, falling 3-1.
- Wittenberg leaves there first four matches with a team hitting-percentage of .202, while Dylan Kolovitz leads the Tigers with 40 kills on the young season.
- Joel Sotos leads the Tigers with 3.13 kills per-set, as the southpaw is currently slugging .250 percent through the four matches.
- Ross Russell progressed each game of the tournament, posting games in succession of 25, 31, 34, and 42 assists, landing the sophomore on the All-Tournament Team.
- As a team, the Tigers are averaging 10.93 kills per-set, 9.86 assists per-set, and 2.14 aces per-set.
ALL TOURNAMENT TEAM
- Lincoln Memorial- Pedro Carvalho
- Mount Saint Joseph- Darrell Swanson
- Cincinnati Christian University- Logan Webber
- Hilbert- Michael Podgorny
- Southen Virginia University- Daniel Aina
- Penn State-Altoona- Jacob Byers
- Wittenberg- Ross Russell