Adam Miracle led all players with 14 kills, while Angel Dache added 10 kills as Mount Olive ended the regular season with a 25-16, 25-19, 25-14 victory over Barton in Conference Carolinas men's volleyball Tuesday at Kornegay Arena. Tim Ebbecke tallied six blocks and a career-high four aces.
Mount Olive clinched the regular season conference title two weeks ago and will be the No. 1 seed in the upcoming conference tournament.
Mount Olive (22-5 overall, 15-1 Conference Carolinas) appeared to be on its way to a first-set rout as the Trojans scored six of the first seven points and jumped out to a 10-3 lead. Ebbecke scored four of the Trojans' first 10 points on a kill and three blocks, two with Dache. After a timeout, Barton (3-20, 2-14) made a run to get back in the match as Cameron Hudson's kill pulled the Bulldogs within 11-6. But Barton never drew closer than five points in the set.
Miracle opened the second set with back-to-back aces as Mount Olive raced out to another 6-1 advantage. Barton took advantage of Trojan errors, while Jordan Robison and Zach McCalla each served an ace to pull the Bulldogs within 9-8. Mount Olive led the remainder of the set but was unable to pull away until aces by Ebbecke and Ben Casado highlighted a 6-1 run as the Trojans built a 21-16 lead. Miracle recorded two kills in the final four points as Mount Olive built a two-set lead.
The Trojans held a slim 16-13 lead in the final set before Dache sparked a 9-1 match-ending run. Dache had two kills and two aces, while Casado, Ebbecke and Miracle combined on a triple block, as the Trojans scored seven consecutive points. After a Barton side out, kills by Rivero and Miracle closed out the match.
The point of the night came in the first set with Mount Olive leading 21-15. After the Trojans recovered and put over a ball that bounced off of two ceiling rafters, Casado recorded three straight digs as Mount Olive withstood three consecutive free ball opportunities by Barton. The Trojans capitalized on a Bulldog overpass and Alex Rivero finished the point with a kill.
Rivero added nine kills and Lewis Einarson had five kills and no errors in seven attempts. Casado narrowly missed his first collegiate double-double with 37 assists and a career-high nine digs. Dan Arnold led all players with 11 digs for the Trojans.
McCalla led Barton with six kills, while Hudson and Tanner Medina added five kills apiece. Medina had no errors in 12 attempts. Robison tallied 17 assists and four kills.
Top-seeded Mount Olive gets a first-round bye, then hosts a semifinal-round match April 10 in the 2013 Conference Carolinas Men's Volleyball Tournament. The Trojans will face the winner of Saturday's match between the No. 4 and No. 5 seeds, which are still to be determined. If Mount Olive wins its semifinal match, the Trojans will play host to the other semifinal winner April 13. Match time for next Wednesday's semifinal round is 7 p.m. at Kornegay Arena.