T&T's Daynte Stewart recorded a double-double in the final set with 14 kills and 10 digs for the Indiana Tech University men's volleyball team but his unit still fell to Siena Heights 3-1 in Adrian, Michgan on Fridat night.
The first set opened with back-and-forth action before the Warriors scored three straight points to take a 7-4 lead forcing the Saints into a timeout. After the timeout, Siena Heights rallied for three unanswered points to tie the set at 7-7. Tech later led 13-10 and then 14-11 before the Saints rallied for a 4-0 run to take a 15-14 lead. The Warriors took back the lead 16-15 only for the set to be tied three times. The Saints eventually took control and scored five points in a row to lead 23-18 and the Warriors couldn't bounce back and dropped the first set 25-20.
The second set as similar to the first with seven ties in the beginning before the Warriors gained some momentum to take a 14-11 lead. Tech extended their lead to 19-16 only for the Saints to tie the set at 19 and continue scoring to lead 21-19 with a 5-0 run. The Warriors bounced back to tie the set 24-24 only for the set to be tied five more times after that. The Saints scored the two points in a row to win the second set 31-29.
There was more back-and-forth action to start to third set until Tech rallied for a 4-0 run to take an 11-8 lead. The Warriors later went on a 5-0 run with three kills by Mason Milan to earn an 18-10 lead. The two teams traded points until the Warriors took control and scored the final three points of the set to win 25-15 and send the match into the fourth set.
In the fourth set, the Warriors went down 2-0 before swinging the momentum to lead 5-4. The set was then tied eight times with neither team able to score more than two points consecutively. The set was tied 12-12 when the Warriors took control for a 4-0 run to lead 16-12. The Saints slowly chipped away at the lead and were down 21-18 before a 4-0 rally gave them the 22-21 lead. The Warriors were only able to score two more points before the Saints took control and won the fourth and final set 25-23 for a 3-1 match victory.
The Warriors were led by national senior men beach and indoor volleyballer Stewart who recorded a double-double while Milan tallied 12 kills and five digs. Chase Christiansen earned 10 kills with a .444 hitting percentage in the match. Brandon Jones led with 38 assists with four kills and six digs while Joey Hermes led the team with 21 digs and three assists.
Last Tuesday in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Stewart and the Warriors swept Cornerstone in their conference match up where the Warriors dominated from the jump to take a 3-0 (25-11, 25-7, 28-26) victory.
Tech was again led by Stewart who recorded 15 kills, one assists, one block solo and two digs. Mason Milan earned 14 kills, one assist, two service aces, two block assists and five digs. Brandon Jones led the Warriors with 23 assists while adding two service aces, three kills and four digs. Chandler Davis recorded 16 assists, one service ace and one dig. Joey Hermes recorded 12 digs for Tech with two assists and two service aces.
The Warriors will be back on the court on Tuesday when they travel to No 13 Goshen.