Charlotte, N.C. – At the Independent Volleyball Association Tournament, the Maryville men's volleyball team earned a split of its two matches in Charlotte, N.C. The No. 5 seeded Saints defeated No. 4 Tusculum in the first match 26-24, 22-25, 25-23, 23-25, 16-14. Top-seed Lincoln Memorial handed the Saints a 25-15, 25-16, 25-15 defeat in the second contest. The Saints will face No. 3 Limestone at 1 p.m. CT Saturday, April 15, in the third-place match.
 
Tusculum recap                        
Joe Nicometo drilled in 20 kills, while David Fleischer had 13 kills, hit .647 and tied the program record for blocks with nine in the taut match versus Tusculum. The fifth set was tied at 6-6 before the Saints scored three straight. Joe Nicometo had a kill, and David Fleischer followed with a kill. Cameron Chambers and Fleischer had a block for a 9-6 lead.
 
After a Tusculum point, another Fleischer kill and a TU error put the Saints up 11-7. Maryville was still ahead at 13-10 after a Nicometo kill but Tusculum reeled off four straight to earn a match point. Luke Van Handel's kill extended the match before Nicometo put down another ball to give Maryville a match point. Jayden Rookhuyzen pounded down a kill for a thrilling 16-14 victory.
 
Statistical Leaders
Kills: Joe Nicometo - 20
Hitting Percentage: David Fleischer - .647
Assists: Cameron Chambers - 51
Service Aces: Jacob Fischer - 1
Digs: Jayden Rookhuyzen and Josh Zhuchenko - 7
Blocks: David Fleischer - 9
 
Records
Maryville: 11-16
Tusculum: 9-18
 
Lincoln Memorial recap          
The Saints were down just 6-5 after a kill by Cameron Chambers but LMU scored three straight. Jacob Fischer's kills pulled Maryville to within 12-8. The Railsplitters reeled off four straight points to surge ahead. However, the Saints never were able to get the gap under seven points.
 
Set two saw the Saints rally from a 7-4 gap to draw even at 7-7 after an LMU error. The Railsplitters scored five of the next six points. The Saints pulled back to within 14-12 until LMU embarked on an 8-1 spree eventually to go up 2-0 in sets.
 
The third set saw Maryville trailing 5-2 but rallied with four unanswered points. Nicometo sandwiched two kills around a solo block by Jayden Rookhuyzen. An LMU error gave the Saints a 6-5 advantage. Maryville was still leading 7-6 before the Railsplitters used a 5-0 run. Rookhuyzen again delivered a kill but LMU reeled off another 4-0 spree. The Saints closed back to within 19-12 but never got closer than XXX points the rest of the way.
 
Statistical Leaders
Kills: Joe Nicometo - 10
Hitting Percentage: Jayden Rookhuyzen - .250
Assists: Cameron Chambers - 19
Service Aces: David Fleischer - 1
Digs: Josh Zhuchenko - 6
Blocks: Jacob Fischer and Luke Van Handel - 2
 
Records
Maryville: 11-17
Lincoln Memorial: 21-4