BEREA, Ohio - At Ursprung Gymnasium, the Adrian men's volleyball team struck for a season-high 0.306 hitting-percentage en route to a thrilling five-set victory over Baldwin Wallace, thereby snapping a seven-match losing-skid.
The 'Dogs put forth a relentless attack, posting plus-0.300 percentages in three out of the five sets, including a mark of 0.567 in the opening frame, and 0.636 in the matches' deciding fifth-set.
For the second day in-a-row,
Chase Heuer led Adrian with 20 kills for his fourth different 20-plus effort of the year. Brothers Tedrick and
Branden Gula combined for 20 successful attacks with 11 and nine kills, respectively.
Right out of the gate, the two sides traded leads. In fact, neither team would build a cushion larger than two points until the Bulldogs moved ahead 15-12 behind a kill by Heuer. Despite the 'Jackets scoring the next three points to retie the set at 15-15, the visitors responded with a 4-1 run of their own, capitalized by a
Brandon Ravelo service ace. The momentum generated from that spark propelled Adrian to a 25-21 first-set win.
Baldwin Wallace came swarming back in the following frame, leading by as many as ten as one point to post a convincing 25-15 scoreline.
Then, in the third set, another back-and-forth battle down the stretch saw the home side leading 19-18 and on the verge of taking a one-set lead. The Bulldogs turned the tables quickly, however, utilizing kills by Heuer, Ravelo and
Branden Gula, plus a series of 'Jacket errors to take the frame 25-21.
After a Baldwin Wallace comeback to force a second fifth-setter for Adrian in as many days, the black and gold did just enough to get the job done, beginning the day's final set on a 5-2 run. The 'Jackets would power back to knot the game at 12-12, but two costly miscues and a statement attack from
Tedrick Gula sent the Bulldogs home winners.
Ravelo finished with a team-high 45 assists, while three different 'Dogs recorded seven-or-more digs.
With its first conference win of the season under its belts, the men's volleyball team will now indulge in a ten-day off-period before returning to host Aquinas on March 2.
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