RIVER FOREST, Ill. -- North Park Men's Volleyball split its opening day inside Geiseman Gym on Friday. The Vikings played a pair of four-set matches, beating host Concordia-Chicago 3-1 before losing to Westminster by the same score in the night cap. The win over the Cougars marked Coach Brittany Welch's first collegiate coaching win.
North Park showed plenty of different rotations and faces in the opening set as the Vikings struggled to figure out their chemistry, shown by a .080 hitting percentage and just seven kills in the 25-17 loss. However, things began to click just a set later.
The Vikings would flip the match on its head, taking the next three sets in order (25-22, 25-21, 25-22) for their first "dub" of the season.
Fifth-year libero Noah Chanthalangsy's 24 digs not only set a new program record, it also annihilates the old record of 19 set by Colin Wong five years ago against St. Norbert.
Sophomore outside hitter Gerald Malana led all players with 15 kills in the match, which ties for 9th-most in a four-set match at NPU. His three aces are 7th-most in a four-set match. Junior middle blocker Jonah Johnsamson was in on seven blocks against the Cougars, good for 2nd-most in four-set matches.
Malana and fifth-year setter Teddy Gedville, who took plenty of swings today, both had double-doubles. Malana with 16 kills and 12 digs while Gedville had 24 assists and 12 digs. Sophomore outside hitter Braedon Lenon turned in a 10-kill match, setting a career high.
North Park also set new program records in Digs (74) and Blocks (11.5) in just its first match of 2025.
In match two where the Vikings faced the Westminster Blue Jays, the service game stood strong for NPU (10 aces) while Westminster got plenty of points (14) via blocks. This back-and-forth match played out to one set apiece after North Park earned a 33-31 win in set two, totaling 22 kills, before they ran out of gas in the next two.
Malana paced the Vikings once more with 22 points, third-most all-time at North Park.
The Vikings' 59 kills is 3rd-most all-time in all matches, and sets a new program record for most team kills in a four-set match, breaking the old record of 55 set against Wabash on March 16, 2022 and tied a week later (March 23, 2022) against Cal Lutheran. Their 75 points is the 3rd-most all-time in all matches (the 70.5 tallied by NPU in today's earlier match falls to 5th), and is a new program record in four-set matches, breaking the record set earlier today against Concordia. Finally, North Park's 58 assists is 3rd-most all-time in all matches, and sets a new program record for most team assists in a four-set match, breaking the old record of 53 set against Benedictine on February 25, 2022.
What's Next?
North Park (1-1) returns to action next Tuesday, Jan. 21, for a match at Concordia-Wisconsin. First serve in Mequon, Wisconsin is set for 7:00 PM CT.
