Alliance, OH - The Wittenberg University men's volleyball team traveled to the University of Mount Union on Thursday evening, falling to the Raiders 3-1 [25-19, 19-25, 25-27, 20-25]. The Tigers were led by Jackson Tyler on the night with 13 kills on 30 total swings on the night for a .333 attacking percentage. Three fellow Tigers tallied double-digit kills on the night, including Russell Burke (12) and Collin Buelow (11) Dominic Melchiorre (11). Melchiorre posted a team-high kill percentage on the night with a .474 mark, adding four blocks and an ace to his total.

Match Breakdown

The Tigers jumped out to an early lead in the first set, putting down 14 kills on 27 total attack attempts. Wittenberg took a 6-3 lead coming off the block from James Trowbridge. The Tigers kept the pressure on up front, extending their advantage out to 19-13, as Melchiorre added a block of his own later in the set. After a kill from Tyler brought the Tigers to set-point, Noah Wissel sealed the first set win for the Red and White. The Tigers dropped the second set to the Raiders 25-19, posting a .226 kill marker placing 14 kills on 31 attacks. Wittenberg responded in the third set taking a quick 7-3 lead. Wittenberg fended off a late Mount Union rally, as the match went back to even at 10-10 and again at 18-18. The two sides continued to go back and forth, as the Tigers overtook a late Raider 23-19 lead, taking a 24-23 advantage and forcing a Mount Union timeout. Coming out of the break, the two sides exchanged points before the Raiders were able to seal the third set win at 27-25. Wittenberg was forced to battle back in the fourth set, posting 12 kills on 28 attacks. Mount Union took the early lead, as Wittenberg fought back to within five late in the match before the Raiders took the final points.

UP NEXT

Wittenberg will return home to Pam Evans Smith Arena on Saturday, Feb. 8 to take on the Terriers of Hiram College. First serve is set for 1:00 PM.