Men's Volleyball Completes Second Day in Phoenix Classic

By Mike DeVader, Reinhardt Director of Athletic Communications & Media

Photo Courtesy of Cumberland Sports Information

LEBANON, Tenn. – Men's volleyball hit the court for the second-straight day in Tennessee beginning on Saturday morning, as Reinhardt had two matches against Indiana Tech and Missouri Valley, respectively, during the final slate of contests in the Phoenix Men's Volleyball Classic.

The Warriors (21-25,16-25,23-25) and Vikings (10-25,21-25,15-25) each claimed victory over the Eagles to drop them to 1-3 on the young season.

"I thought today we rode the emotional roller coaster a bit too much," lead Eagle CJ Shearer said. "We had our high moments, but didn't handle adversity as well as yesterday. That's something I have to be better about helping them overcome; along with the technical things. There are good things to piggyback off this weekend into the future… Chase Cross stepped up in moments we needed him, Reynaldo Medina worked hard to become a solid libero and all three of our middles are picking up the speed of the game.

"Matthew Corrales also showed incredible leadership this weekend. I've known Matt since he was in high school, and to see where he has come from since then has been incredible. I'm proud to get to see the young man he has become and be even a small part of that. I am honored to coach these men, and I will do my part to make sure we are improving going forward. To God goes all the Glory."

A hard-fought first set against Indiana Tech ultimately came down to the final four points with the game tied at 21-21. After a timeout by the Warriors, they took four points in-a-row to jump up early on Reinhardt. The Eagles didn't hit well in the set, combining for -.059 hitting percentage with 11 errors.

The Warriors weren't much better with a -.031, but got the tallies when they needed them most to go up, 1-0.

The second game got away from the hometown club as errors continued to plague the group. The offense still wasn't where it needed to be, either, as the Eagles hit .000 on 32 swings. The two offenses would come alive in set three as Reinhardt posted a .393 kill percentage with 13 kills, but the Warriors would explode with a .615 hitting percentage and 18 kills.

Both teams would battle to a 24-23 score in favor of Indiana Tech following an Eagle point, but Indiana Tech completed the sweep with a kill on the very next play.

Chase Cross would lead the way offensively in match one with nine kills and a .263 morning. Ricardo Mujica hit .500 with 24 assists and seven digs.

Reynaldo Medina notched a team-best 10 digs. Adrian Pape earned four of his squad's 12 assisted blocks.

Against Missouri Valley, Matthew Corrales tallied 11 kills and hit .280 as Reinhardt struggled in the first and third games en route to a straight-set loss. The second stanza proved-to-be the best of the bunch as the Eagles accumulated a .320 mark with 12 kills.

In that set, the Eagles and Vikings exchanged blows and the hometown team would find itself ahead by a pair on multiple occasions. Now up, 18-15, Missouri Valley would net seven of the next nine scores to move ahead by a pair of their own, 22-20.

Corrales would get his bunch back within one, but the momentum would continue for the Vikings all the way to the finish line.

Mujica had 19 assists and Nicolas Castro was out-front with a half-dozen digs.

With some games now under its belt, Reinhardt now heads back to the practice court to get ready for another outing on the road at No. 2 Campbellsville (Ky.) on Jan. 28.

First serve is at 7 p.m.

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For more information on Reinhardt Men's Volleyball, please click here.