PALOS HEIGHTS, Ill. – The Geneva College men's volleyball team earned a dramatic five-set victory over Carolina in its opening match at the National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) Invitational on Friday, hosted by Trinity Christian College. The Golden Tornadoes defeated Carolina 25-21, 21-25, 22-25, 25-19, 15-13. Geneva had a very quick turnaround to play the hosts late Friday night and lost to the second-seeded Trinity Christian squad 18-25, 11-25, 22-25. However, Geneva's win over Carolina enabled the Golden Tornadoes to advance to the semifinals tomorrow.
Geneva came in as the fourth of seven seeded teams at the invitational and took on No. 6 Carolina in the first match of the evening, and it proved to be a very even match. Carolina had an explosive attack, but the Golden Tornado block played a huge role for Geneva.
The Golden Tornadoes took the first set, using four straight points late to win 25-21. Geneva trailed 19-18 prior to the run, with senior Jake Williams providing back-to-back kills, along with kills from juniors Carter Milroy and Emerson Spear in the stretch.
Geneva jumped out to a huge early lead in the second set, 13-3, with sophomore Decker Milroy providing back-to-back aces and the Spear brothers, Byron and Emerson, providing back-to-back blocks. However, things fell apart as Carolina used a 16-4 run to come all the back, and the Bruins finished off the comeback, 25-21.
Carolina carried that momentum into the third set, scoring the first four points. Geneva responded quickly, retaking the lead at 7-6 on another double block from the Spears, and the set was close the rest of the way. However, the Bruins scored the final three points of the set to break a 22-22 tie and win 25-22, putting Geneva in a 2-1 deficit.
Carolina again jumped ahead early in set four, this time 6-1. Geneva never let the lead get any bigger, though, and slowly managed to get back into the set. The Golden Tornadoes then used a six-point run midway through the set to take an 18-14 edge. Carolina managed to pull within one point, 19-18, but a kill from Byron Spear started a 6-1 Geneva run to win the set, 25-19, sending the match to a fifth and final set.
The teams mostly traded points back-and-forth for the first several minutes of the fifth set, with Carolina scoring first and then Geneva answering. The Golden Tornadoes took their first lead at 10-9, and after the Bruins pulled even at 13-13, Bryon Spear came up with a huge solo block when it appeared Carolina's Bryson Abernathy was about to have an open swing, and a Bruin attack error on a scramble play on the next point enabled Geneva to win, 15-13.
Byron Spear led the team with 13 kills, while Williams and Carter Milroy each added nine kills. Geneva hit .240, finishing with 47 kills, 20 less than Carolina's 67 kills on a .262 hitting percentage. The Golden Tornadoes had 10 blocks, led by Carter Milroy and Emerson Spear's five blocks. Graduate student Curtis Thomas led the team with 24 assists, while sophomore Joshua Sangrey had 11 digs.
The Golden Tornadoes had just 30 minutes to regroup before starting their second match of the day against the hosts, Trinity Christian, late in the evening. Geneva took its only lead of the first set at 4-3 after a kill from Carter Milroy, but the Trolls slowly pulled away in the set to win 25-18.
The long night eventually started to get the best of Geneva, with Trinity Christian easily winning the second set by a score of 25-11. The Golden Tornadoes battled better in the third set, bolstered by their block, but Trinity Christian held off a late Geneva rally to win 25-22.
Emerson Spear led Geneva with five kills, while Decker Milroy had 13 assists.
On Saturday, Geneva will face the winner of the other pool, Olivet Nazarene, who came into the invitational as the No. 5 seed but on Friday defeated the No. 1 seed Judson and the No. 3 seed Lancaster Bible. That match will begin at 1:00 p.m. Trinity Christian will face Lancaster Bible in the other semifinal. If the Golden Tornadoes defeat Olivet Nazarene, they will play in the championship game at 5:00 p.m. against the winner of the other semifinal. If they lose, they will play at 3:00 p.m. in the third-place match against the loser of the other semifinal.
Through purposeful learning in a community reflecting the full spectrum of God's kingdom, a Geneva College experience inspires students to discover a faith-life calling in service to God and neighbor. Offering 195+ traditional undergraduate majors and programs, fully online Adult Degree Programs and high-demand graduate degrees, Geneva's programs are recognized for their high quality and affordability. Geneva was founded and is governed by the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America (RPCNA) and is a founding member of both the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities (CCCU) and the International Association for Christian Education (IACE).
