The Tusculum men’s volleyball team pushed North Greenville to a decisive fifth set on Tuesday (Apr. 1) night before falling in overtime.
The Pioneers (13-11) dropped the five-set decision to the Trailblazers (10-11) by scores of 23-25, 23-25, 25-19, 25-14, 16-18.
Logan Keothavy (15) was one of four Trailblazers to reach double figures in kills, followed by Connor Kemp (12), Michael de la Cruz (11), and Jacob Koch (10). Logan Taylor dished out 42 assists as NGU had five players land a service ace: Keothavy, de la Cruz, Taylor, Koch, and Benjamin Andexler. Keothavy finished with a match-high 10 digs for a double-double. De la Cruz led all players with five block assists in the contest.
Four Pioneers notched double-digit kills in the match: Deklan Wingo (21), Joel Dubinsky (12), Morgan Makovec (11), and Aiden Roper (10). Caleb Hammann rounded out the scoring with two kills. Kevin Blankenship distributed 47 assists, as both Makovec and Hammann landed a pair of aces. Patrick Gresham tallied a team-best eight digs, while Makovec had a hand in four blocks.
North Greenville hit .206 as a team with 57 kills and 30 errors on 131 total attempts. Tusculum hit .308 with 56 kills, 20 errors, and 117 total attacks. The Pioneers led the match in assists (55-51), service aces (8-5), and digs (33-30), while the Trailblazers finished with more total blocks (11-7).
Tusculum travels to Catawba on Friday (Apr. 4) for the inaugural meeting between the programs. First serve is scheduled for 7 p.m.
Short Box Score (Match)
2025 Tusculum Men’s Volleyball
North Greenville vs Tusculum (Apr 01, 2025 at Greeneville, Tenn.)
North Greenville def. Tusculum 25-23, 25-23, 19-25, 14-25, 18-16
North Greenville (10-11) (Kills-aces-blocks) – Keothavy, Logan 15-1-3; Kemp, Connor 12-0-2; de la Cruz, Michael 11-1-5; Koch, Jacob 10-1-4; Andexler, Benjamin 6-1-4; Andexler, Benjamin 1-0-1; Taylor, Logan 1-1-1; Gantt, Parker 1-0-0; Totals 57-5-11.0. (Assists) – Taylor, Logan 42. (Dig leaders) – Keothavy, Logan 10; Taylor, Logan 5
Tusculum (13-11) (Kills-aces-blocks) – Deklan Wingo 21-1-2; Joel Dubinsky 12-1-1; Morgan Makovec 11-2-4; Aiden Roper 10-0-2; Caleb Hammann 2-2-2; Kai Williams 0-1-0; Kevin Blankenship 0-1-1; Totals 56-8-7.0. (Assists) – Kevin Blankenship 47. (Dig leaders) – Patrick Gresham 8; Kevin Blankenship 5
Site: Greeneville, Tenn. (Pioneer Arena)
Date: Apr 01, 2025 Attend: 126 Time: 2:05
Referees: Rocky Emert, Deidre Brown
Line judges: Sabrina Parcell, Larry Ray
