Trojans Pick Up First Win Of 2019 Season With Three-Set Sweep Over Erskine

MOUNT OLIVE, N.C. --- The University of Mount Olive men's volleyball team found their first win of the season in the Conference Carolinas opener at Kornegay Arena in a three-set sweep over the Flying Fleet of Erskine College on Friday evening.

GAME INFORMATION
Score: Mount Olive 3 - Erskine 0 (26-24, 25-20 25-23)
Records: Mount Olive (1-4, 1-1), Erskine (2-6, 1-1)
Location: Kornegay Arena | Mount Olive, N.C.

How It Happened
Play-by-Play

FIRST SET

• Mount Olive opened the match with a 4-1 run that included two kills from Iyanu Adebisi.
• The Flying Fleet countered to take a one-point lead, 5-4, on a four-point run.
• The Trojans took a two-point, 7-5, lead only to have Erskine knot the score at eight-all before Mount Olive gained an eight-point lead following a 9-1 run that put the score at 17-8.
• Erskine chipped away at the Mount Olive lead to tie the set at 23-all following a 15-6 rally by the Flying Fleet.
• The score knotted up once more at 24 all following a UMO timeout, but a kill by Adebisi and a double block by Yigit Erkek and Adebisi gave the Trojans the two points needed to close the opening set 26-24.

SECOND SET

• Erskine carried some momentum from in the opening set into the second as they took an early 10-6 lead.
• A 6-1 run by the Trojans gave UMO a slim one-point lead, 12-11, as Erskine called a timeout to regroup after giving up five points on errors.
• The Trojans opened up a five-point lead, 20-15, as Erkek drove down a kill off the Nicolas Laxar set.
• The Flying Fleet tried to rally back late but the Trojans held Erskine off to win the second set 25-20 as UMO put down four kills to close the set.

THIRD SET

• Mount Olive opened the third set going up 3-1 but quickly found themselves trailing 5-4 following Flying Fleet a kill.
• The scored knotted up six times in a 9-8 run led by UMO that put the score at 13 all and forced Erskine to call a timeout.
• Back-to-back Erskine errors gave Mount Olive a 15-14 lead but the Fleet responded with three-straight to take a 17-15 lead into a UMO timeout.
• Erskine held a 20-17 lead before the Trojans came back to tie the score at 20 on two Fleet errors and a kill by Brad Monaghan.
• The Trojans took a three-point lead, 24-21, as Monaghan put down back-to-back kills that set Mount Olive up for match point.
• Erskine closed the gap to one point, 24-23, after scoring two in a row but a service error by the Flying Fleet gave UMO their 25th point to win the third set 25-23 and the match 3-0.

KEY STATS

• Brad Monaghan led the Trojan attack with 14 kills, a season-high for the senior from New Zealand. 
• Iyanu Adebisi joined Monaghan in double-digits with 11 kills, a career-high for the junior right side.

UP NEXT

UMO returns to the court tomorrow morning for a Conference Carolinas contest against Emmanuel College. The Trojans and Lions will face off with their first serve set for 11 a.m.