Mount Olive Comes From Behind To Defeat North Greenville In Five Sets

MOUNT OLIVE, N.C. --- The Mount Olive Trojans came from two sets down to win three straight defeating the Crusaders of North Greenville University in five sets on Saturday afternoon in Conference Carolinas men's volleyball action at Kornegay Arena in Mount Olive, N.C. Tobi Azeez led the Trojans with a career-high 26 kills while Eric Visgitis was second on the team with 17.

GAME INFORMATION
Score: Mount Olive 3 - North Greenville 2 (23-25, 24-26, 32-30, 25-23, 15-13)
Records: Mount Olive (9-12 | 8-4), North Greenville (15-9 | 8-5)
Location: Kornegay Arena | Mount Olive, N.C.

How It Happened
Play-by-Play

FIRST SET

• The Trojans held a slim 6-4 lead following a double block from Eric Visgitis and Jarrod Ferguson but North Greenville scored four straight to lead 8-6.
• A kill from Azeez knotted the score at eight all, but NGU took a three-point lead, 15-12, into a UMO timeout after the Crusaders went on a 7-4 run.
• NGU held a four-point lead late in the set 20-16, but UMO pulled back within one 24-23, after a 7-4 rally by the Trojans that included four kills and three Crusader errors, however, NGU scored the final point to win set one 25-23.

SECOND SET

• Neither team really took a solid hold of the set as the lead was only one or two points in either direction. The score knitted up 22 times in the set with the Crusaders emerging the winners of set two 26-24.
• UMO tallied 13 kills on 36 attacks with five errors for a .222 hitting percentage.

THIRD SET

• NGU took the early 7-3 lead to begin set three.
• The Trojans responded with a 9-3 rally that put the score at 12-10 in UMO's favor. Five kills, two Shane Yeo aces, and two Crusader errors all combined in the run.
• Following a called North Greenville timeout, the teams went on a 10-10 run with Mount Olive still holding a slim two-point lead, 22-20 as a second timeout was called by the Crusaders.
• North Greenville battled back to knot the score at 23 all forcing UMO to call a timeout to strategize.
• The teams traded the lead twice while tying the score up seven times, last at 30 all, before the Trojans put together a pair of points off a Luke Visgitis kill and a Yeo service ace to win set three 32-30.

FOURTH SET

• The fourth set began competitively but soon saw the Crusaders take a four-point lead, 11-7, into a Trojan timeout.
• Mount Olive came out of the timeout on a 10-5 run taking a 17-16 lead. Five kills, two Azeez aces, two Crusader errors, and a solo block by Yeo all contributed in the run.
• NGU knotted the score up three times before UMO took a two-point lead, 22-20, forcing a Crusader timeout.
• North Greenville went on a 3-1 run out of the timeout to tie the score at 23 all making Mount Olive call their last timeout of the set. 
• UMO scored the last two points needed to win the fourth set 25-23, and knotted the match score at two sets each, following an NGU error and a solo block from Yeo.

FIFTH SET

• The Crusaders opened the final set with a 6-4 lead but a 4-0 run by the Trojans gave UMO a slim two-point lead 8-6 as the teams switched sides. Eric Visgitis tallied a kill, a solo block, and assisted Yeo on a double block in the run.
• NGU called a timeout but UMO scored back-to-back kills from Eric Visgitis and Iyanu Adebisi and Visgitis added a solo block in a 3-1 run that put the score at 11-7 as the Crusaders called their second timeout.
• Eric added another solo block before North Greenville put down a kill that put the score at 12-8 as UMO called its first timeout of the set.
• The Crusaders climbed back within a point, 14-13 of the Trojans following a 6-1 run, but Mount Olive found the match point on a kill by Tobi Azeez to win the fifth set 15-13 and complete the come-from-behind sweep of the match to win the game 3-2.

KEY STATS

• Tobi Azeez led the Trojans with a career-high 26 kills while Eric Visgitis was second on the team with 17.
• Shane Yeo tallied 62 assists and tied for a team-high three service aces.

UP NEXT

Mount Olive returns to action on Tuesday, March 26, for a rivalry match against the Bulldogs of Barton College in Kornegay Arena. First serve is slated for 7 p.m. between the Trojans and Bulldogs.