CHICAGO, Ill. -- After having their season cut short on March 11, 2020, the North Park University men's volleyball team opened their 2021 season with a five-set win over the Adrian College Bulldogs (25-18, 21-25, 25-22, 27-29, 15-10) on Saturday night.
North Park opened the evening by trailing 8-4, as the Bulldogs took advantage of four-straight Viking errors. However, the Vikings answered back with seven-straight points, powered by a pair of kills from sophomore Erik Bullard.
Keeping their distance the rest of the set thanks to a .241 attacking percentage, the Vikings took the opening set 25-18.
Adrian responded in a big way in the second set. After hitting just .120 in the night's opening set, the Bulldogs exploded to a .455 hitting percentage, earning a 25-21 second-set win.
Set three involved eight lead changes.
Just over halfway through the set, Adrian held a small lead at 16-14. However, kills by outside hitter Armando Quinones, a service ace by freshman setter Teddy Gedville, and a pair of Bulldog attacking errors gave North Park the two-point lead, 18-16. Adrian briefly grabbed a 21-20 lead, but the Vikings would score five of the next six points as the Bulldogs committed five errors and freshman outside hitter Emmanuel Eugene tallied a kill.
In a dramatic fourth set, the Vikings appeared to be cruising to a four-set victory. However, with the score at 18-11 in favor of the Vikings, the Bulldogs interrupted that momentum by scoring six of the next seven points by four kills between Shane Wenz and Chase Heuer. North Park would chip away, actually regaining a 23-22 lead. However, the set moved into extra play and a pair of Viking errors, coupled with Adrian's 18 kills, forced a fifth set.
Thankfully, the Bulldogs' offense plummeted in the final set of the night while the Vikings peaked - Adrian hit -.095 while North Park posted their best hitting percentage (.286) of the night to cruise to a 15-10, securing a season-opening win.
Head Coach Michael Sopocy showed his gratitude for the NPU administration and AT staff, following the win, in an interview with play-by-play broadcaster Gregory Sager:
Quick Hits:
- Quinones led all attackers with a career-high 20 kills
- Bullard followed closely behind with 19 kills
- Gedville drove four service aces and assisted on 47 kills
- Junior middle blocker Phillip Duros secured a career-high nine blocks
- The Vikings avenge a 2020 straight-sets loss to the Bulldogs
What's Next?
North Park (1-0) will take some time off before facing Benedictine University on Friday, February 5. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. inside the NPU Gym.
