
No. 10 IPFW Advances to MIVA Finals
4/26/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Volleyball
April 26, 2007
Columbus, OH - The junior trio of C.J. Macias, Jason Yhost, and Brock Ullrich took care of the offensive end, while senior setter Colin Lundeen was the catalyst for a strong defensive effort as No. 10 IPFW topped No. 11 Loyola Chicago, 3-0 in tonight's first MIVA Semi-Final at Ohio State.
It was the third time this season that the Mastodons got the better of the Ramblers. In the season's first two meetings, IPFW fell behind 0-2 before storming back to take the next three. Tonight, the 'Dons controlled the match from the opening serve and won by the scores of 30-26, 30-23, and 30-21.
IPFW (21-7) hit a blistering .407 in the match, but maybe more importantly gave a tremendous defensive effort.
The Mastodons out-blocked the Ramblers 13.0 to 4.0. 2007 All-MIVA First Team middle blocker Josh Stewart led the 'Dons with two solo blocks and seven block assists.
Lundeen registered a double-double, running the offense to perfection with 39 assists, and impressively led IPFW with 10 digs and added five block assists.
Macias put down a team-high 14 kills (.370) and fired off two service aces.
Yhost had 13 kills and hit .474, while Ullrich added nine kills on .368 hitting.
Rambler middle Ian Anderson led all scorer's with 15 kills, but he was the only one in double-figures.
With the loss, Loyola ends its season at 23-7. It is the third season in-a-row that IPFW has knocked the Ramblers out of the MIVA tournament.
It is also the third straight MIVA final appearance for the 'Dons, who topped Loyola in the 2006 final, but lost to Ohio State in 2005.
IPFW will face the winner of semi-final #2 between host Ohio State and Ball State.
~Dons~