ROCKFORD, Ill. - The Rockford University men's volleyball team went undefeated at the Seaver Center, capturing a pair of wins against Wisconsin Lutheran (3-1) and Trinity International (3-1). The Regent's opening match came against Wisconsin Lutheran. Rockford's solid offense, including 24 combined kills between
Isaiah Dixon (13) and
Danny Karpenko (11), led the RU squad to its first win of the afternoon by a final score of 3-1 (25-22, 18-25, 25-22, 25-17). Riding high after the first match, the Regents carried the momentum into the second contest. Rockford served its way to the win, securing the school record for aces in a match (12) by the final point. RU finished off the Trojans and recorded a 2-0 record on the day, winning 3-1 (25-17, 25-13, 14-25, 25-16).
Rockford 3, Wisconsin Lutheran 1
- RU dominated to open the first match, running up the score to 7-2 thanks to a pair of aces and 3 kills.
- Wisconsin Lutheran looked to be gaining traction, but Rockford poured on more points, running up the score to 18-8, nearing the end of set one.
- When it seemed out of reach, a 14-5 Warrior run brought WLC right back into the contest and cut the Rockford lead to 23-22.
- Luckily the Regents sealed the deal, grabbing the next two points and taking the first set in a nail-biter, 25-22.
- A back-and-forth battle for both sides to start set two quickly turned for the worse when WLC built a 6-2 lead.
- Rockford pulled back within one but quickly fell apart again as the Warriors charged into a 15-8 lead.
- The Regents unfortunately never recovered from this run, only able to keep up with WLC before the Warriors took the final point and evened up the score at 1-1 with a 25-18 set win.
- Wisconsin Lutheran continued its reign over the Regents with a fast start to set number three, taking a 15-8 lead yet again.
- Rockford was ready this time though, dominating the next eight points and crawling back and taking the lead away from WLC, and finishing the job in yet another narrow battle, winning 25-22 with kills by Isaiah Dixon and Joaquin Santillan to seal the deal.
- Wisconsin Lutheran took over at the start of set four as well, jumping out to a 12-5 lead.
- Rockford once again found its stride in the middle of the set, going on a 14-1 run and leaving WLC behind with the score at 19-13. Danny Karpenko had two kills and three service aces in that period.
- The Regents polished off the set with little trouble, taking 6 of the last ten points to secure the set win and match victory, 25-17.
Rockford 3, Trinity International 1
- The two sides started off match number three of the day battling to an even 10-10 score.
- The Regents took control for the remainder of the set, never letting the Trojans back into the set. RU won set number one 25-17. Joaquin Santillan had three kills and Isaiah Dixon had two kills to lead the offense the rest of the set.
- Rockford carried the momentum into set number two, hopping out into an 18-8 lead quickly. Joaquin Santillan had two kills and an ace to add to his totals, while Danny Karpenko added two kills and Josh Albers recorded two aces to add to the Regents lead.
- The Regents had little issue winning set number two after that run, barely allowing the Trojans into the double digits before taking the set 25-13.
- The Trojans had their backs against the wall and were facing a 2-0 set deficit. Set number three looked to be going RU's way for about two points, until a 21-7 run by the Trojans decimated the Regents momentum. RU only scored five more points before Trinity International polished off the third set, dominating the Regents and forcing a fourth set by a final score of 25-14.
- Rockford got back into stride after the break and start of set four. A short back-and-forth eventually turned into a 5-0 run by RU that put them in the lead 11-4. Derek Jones was on fire during the set to this point, recording four kills and a pair of aces.
- The Regents never let the Trojans within five points the rest of the set, confidently racking up points until Isaiah Dixon buried an attack for the final kill, winning the set 25-16 and the match 3-1.
Rockford 3, Wisconsin Lutheran 1
- Isaiah Dixon led in kills with 13. He also had 5 digs.
- Danny Karpenko recorded 11 kills with a team high .318 hitting percentage. Karpenko also tied the school record for aces with 5.
- Josh Albers had 41 assists to lead the Regents.
- Da'Quan Bates led in digs with 11.
Rockford 3, Trinity International 1
- Josh Albers led in assists and service aced with 26 and 4, respectively.
- Joaquin Santillan led the team in kills with 9.
- Connor McNear had the team-high in blocks with 3.
- Da'Quan Bates recorded 9 digs.
- The Regents as a team broke the school record for aces in a match with 12 total.
