Chicago, Ill. – The North Park University men's volleyball team (8-8, 4-7 CCIW) downed previously undefeated UC-Santa Cruz (7-1) on Wednesday afternoon by a score of 3-1 (25-22, 25-16, 14-25, 29-27) at NPU Gymnasium.
North Park sprinted out to a 5-0 lead in set one, but the Banana Slugs stayed within striking distance the entire set even making a late run to tie the set at 21. An Erik Bullard kill kicked off a Vikings run scoring four of the final fives points to win the set by a score of 25-22. Emmanuel Eugene grabbed the final two points for NPU to win the set.
Set number two was also a close one with the Slugs and the Vikings even at 10 early in the set. North Park then set off on a four-point run bookended by Quinn Robinson kills to gain firm control of the set. Later in the set, after a Santa Cruz service error, two more kills from Eugene and an ace from Phillip Duros put NPU on the cusp of a 2-0 lead. Eugene found the set winner just a few plays later to win it 25-14 for the Vikings.
The Banana Slugs found their stroke in the third set winning 25-14, setting the stage for a slugfest in set number four, which had ten ties and four lead changes. After an Armando Quinones kill late, the two sides were square at 20 with UC-Santa Cruz looking to score five more points to force a fifth set. The Banana Slugs scored the next three points and in hopes of doing so, but the Vikings hadn't had their final say. A Bullard kill launched a North Park rally as it was followed up with another Duros ace to pull the Vikings within one. The Slugs answered with a kill to put themselves at set point, but again, North Park didn't quit. Bullard again got a kill followed by a Robinson and Teddy Gedville block to force extra play with the teams tied at 24. North Park had multiple chances at match point, but the Slugs answered every call before the score went to 27-27 and a Quinones kill again gave North Park a chance to finish the match. Santa Cruz hit the net on an attack during the next play ensuring that the Vikings would hand the Banana Slugs their first loss of the season with a 29-27 fourth set win to win the match 3-1.
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What's Next?
North Park (8-8, 4-7 CCIW) close out their season with a home match against No. 2 Carthage College (16-0, 10-0 CCIW) on Saturday, April 3rd. That match will start at 2 p.m. at NPU Gymnasium.
