CRAWFORDSVILLE, Ind. — Patrick Volk was honored before first serve on Senior Night, then helped deliver a key Midwest Collegiate Volleyball League victory by pounding down 13 kills as Wabash rolled past Mount St. Joseph 25-17, 25-14, 25-17 Thursday night at Chadwick Court. The win kept the Little Giants a half-game in front of Baldwin Wallace for fourth place in the Midwest Collegiate Volleyball League standings, with the top four teams earning berths to next weekend's conference tournament.
Wabash (8-11 overall, 5-3 MCVL) controlled the match with a .351 team attack percentage, 11 service aces, and seven total team blocks while holding Mount St. Joseph (6-12, 1-7) to a .068 hitting percentage.
The opening set featured five ties and one lead change before the Little Giants began to create separation. After Mount St. Joseph closed within 6-5, junior Shad Wilson helped key a smaller first-set push with consecutive aces that moved Wabash in front 9-6. From there, freshman Jaden Greenwell fueled the close, recording four kills during a 7-2 finishing stretch that turned an 18-15 edge into the 25-17 victory.
The decisive momentum swing came in the second set, exactly as Wabash held an 8-5 lead. Wilson stepped behind the service line and delivered 10 consecutive serves during a 9-0 Little Giant scoring run, blowing the set open from a three-point margin to a commanding 17-5 advantage. The stretch included three service aces by Wilson, two MSJ attack errors, a bad set, and kills by Greenwell and Bawibawi Thang as the home crowd watched the Little Giants seize complete control.
That run proved to be the defining sequence of the night. Wabash hit .524 in the second set with 13 kills and only two errors on 21 attacks. Thang recorded four kills in the frame, Patrick Volk added three, and the Little Giants rolled to the 25-14 set win.
Wabash maintained the pressure in the third, racing to a 9-2 lead behind a Christopher Board ace and back-to-back kills from Patrick Volk. Mount St. Joseph cut the margin to 14-11, but the Little Giants answered with a 7-3 push to reclaim full command.
Patrick Volk and Greenwell each finished with 13 kills to lead Wabash. Greenwell produced one of his most efficient matches of the season, hitting .750 on 16 swings. Wilson added six kills, five service aces, and 12 total points while serving as the catalyst for the match's defining run. Matthew Stitle guided the offense with 20 assists, while Graham Volk added nine assists in reserve action.
Defensively, Piotr Wolan posted eight digs with flawless serve reception, while Christopher Board handled 17 reception chances without an error. Wabash sided out at a 72-percent rate in both the first and third sets.
The Little Giants close out the regular season Friday at 7 p.m. at Chadwick Court against Wittenberg University, needing one more strong performance to solidify their spot in the four-team MCVL Tournament field.
