SOUTHFIELD, Mich. — Lawrence Tech men's volleyball used a balanced attack and timely serving to defeat Mount Vernon Nazarene University 3–1 on Saturday afternoon at Don Ridler Field House, by scores of 25-20, 25-21, 19-25 and 25-18.
The Blue Devils finished with 49 kills and a .265 hitting percentage while compiling 94 total points and 10 service aces. Outside hitter Mario Cid led all attackers with 17 kills and 20.5 points, and setter Pedro Aguiar quarterbacked the offense with 44 assists as Lawrence Tech controlled the opening two sets, weathered a third-set surge from the Cougars and closed out the match in the fourth.
Lawrence Tech set the tone early in the first set behind Cid, who delivered multiple kills to push the Blue Devils in front 24-20. With the set on the line, opposite hitter Noah Lippman sealed the frame at 25-20 with a service ace, the first of several key points from the service line for the hosts. The Blue Devils out-hit Mount Vernon Nazarene in the opener and used steady side-out play to keep the Cougars from mounting a late rally.
The second set followed a similar script. Lawrence Tech built separation around the midpoint of the set behind a pair of service aces that helped produce an 11-6 advantage. Mount Vernon Nazarene closed the gap at times, but the Blue Devils continued to side out efficiently and leaned on their block to slow the Cougar attack. Middle blocker Yegor Volkov capped the set with a kill to secure a 25-21 win and a 2–0 lead in the match.
Mount Vernon Nazarene responded in the third, taking advantage of a cleaner attack and improved serving to extend the match. Outside hitter Ethan Cline fueled the Cougars' run with multiple kills and key touches at the net as MVNU led through the middle and late stages of the set. A team service ace, credited to the Cougars and Wineberg on the line, closed out a 25-19 decision that cut the Blue Devils' lead to 2–1.
The Cougars carried that momentum into the fourth and jumped out to a 9-4 lead behind contributions from Tierney and Devault, but Lawrence Tech answered with a composed comeback. Cid and Lippman paced the offense, while the Blue Devils' block began to reassert itself at the net. Lawrence Tech gradually flipped the set, tightened up from the service line and pulled away down the stretch before Gustavo Machado delivered a match-clinching service ace for the 25-18 victory.
Lippman finished with 10 kills and 14.5 points to complement Cid on the pins, while Machado added the final ace in a 10-ace team performance. Aguiar's 44 assists came without a setting error as he directed an offense that produced 49 kills on 102 swings. Defensively, the Blue Devils recorded eight total blocks, including three solo, and 27 digs.
Mount Vernon Nazarene totaled 40 kills and hit .173 with four service aces and nine total blocks. Cline led the Cougars with 13 kills and 15.5 points, and setter Jaxson Snell posted 33 assists with five digs in the loss.
