Mastodons Defeat No. 20 Charleston

Thursday, January 22

Fort Wayne, Ind.

7 PM

Purdue Fort Wayne

3-2,0-0MIVA

Charleston

2-2,0-0EIVA

Charleston (WV)

Purdue Fort Wayne

Hunter Hopkins

Photo by: Josh Gales

1/22/2026 9:30:00 PM | Men's Volleyball

Box Score Box Score

FORT WAYNE, Ind. - The Purdue Fort Wayne men's volleyball team defeated No. 20 Charleston in four sets (25-21, 22-25, 25-13, 25-19) on Thursday night (Jan. 22).

The Mastodons claimed the first lead in the set following a 5-1 run, going up 12-9 after back-to-back Owen Banner aces. The Golden Eagles answered with a 4-0 run to take the lead. The 'Dons pulled off a 6-0 run to reclaim the lead at 22-19. Purdue Fort Wayne closed out the set at 25-21, hitting .481 in the first.

The 'Dons opened the second frame by taking a 3-0 lead. Charleston began to work the Mastodons, churning out an 8-3 run. Purdue Fort Wayne returned the favor with a 5-1 charge into the media break, up 15-13. Both sides hit below .125 in the set, but the Golden Eagles did enough to take the second set 25-22.

Purdue Fort Wayne owned the third set, finishing at a dominating 25-13. The Mastodons used runs of 4-0, 5-1 and 5-0 throughout the frame to extend their lead. The 'Dons held Charleston to a -.107 hitting percentage in the set, while boasting a .458 percentage of their own.

The fourth set began with the teams trading off three consecutive 3-0 spurts. While the score remained close in the final set, the 'Dons retained the lead from 8-8 until 25-19. The Purdue Fort Wayne defense showed up again in the final frame, holding the Golden Eagles to a .000 hitting percentage in the set.

Banner finished the match with a career high five service aces, along with 16 kills. Ethan Skalski finished his first game as a Mastodon with 11 kills, six block assists, two service aces and three digs. Hunter Hopkins recorded 42 assists. Andrew Mayer led the 'Dons will 11 digs.

Purdue Fort Wayne climbs to 3-2. No. 20 Charleston moves to 2-2. The 'Dons will host Maryville (Jan. 23) on the Arnie Ball Court tomorrow night (Jan. 23).

~ Feel the Rumble ~