ASHLAND, Va. --- Randolph-Macon College is 2-for-2 in the first two seasons of ODAC men's volleyball as the top-seeded and nationally 17th-ranked Yellow Jackets earned a tough 3-1 victory over EMU in the conference title match on Saturday afternoon in RMC's Crenshaw Gymnasium.
The win for Randolph-Macon not only features the league trophy, but includes the conference's automatic entry to the Division III Men's Volleyball Championship. The full field of 21 teams will be announced via selection show on NCAA.com on Monday, April 13 at 10:00 a.m. ET.
Randolph-Macon (30-4) posts the first 30-win season in program history with its win (25-21, 25-18, 23-25, 25-22) on Saturday. The victory, however, was not without difficulty as a stout EMU (13-19) net defense that registered 12.5 total blocks (1 solo, 23 assists) helped fuel a potential Royals' comeback bid after winning the third set when down 2-0.
Still, Randolph-Macon's attack was prolific with
Bryce Matthews posting a match-high 23 kills on a .442 attack percentage.
Ian Wagenhauser smacked 18 kills at a .289 clip to go with a match-best four aces, while setter
Kody Rogan kept the offense humming with 49 assists.
Phillip Van Essendelft and
Nathan Karluk led defensively at the net with four total blocks (1 solo, 3 assists) each. Wagenhauser picked up a match-high 10 digs.
EMU's offense was led by
Ezekiel Awkward with 13 kills plus two aces.
Derek Diaz went for nine kills, while
Jose Melendez chipped in six. EMU's two setters,
Ricardo Fernandez Perez (15) and
Jonas Stafford (13) combined for 28 assists.
Daeman Odom led the Royals' "block party" with a match-best seven assisted blocks.
James Powell had one solo effort and five block assists, while Melendez and
Pierce Donnelly had five block assists each.
ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
- RMC: Bryce Matthews, Kody Rogan, Ian Wagenhauser
- EMU: Ezekiel Awkward, Derek Diaz
- RC: Jackson Rutkowski
- VWU: James Young