GREENEVILLE, Tenn. — The Tusculum men’s volleyball team made its 2026 home debut with a sweep of Emmanuel on Thursday (Jan. 15) night.
The Pioneers (1-1) won their home opener over the Lions (0-1) by scores of 25-16, 25-22, 25-16.
Elek Cumming notched seven kills to lead the Emmanuel offense. Oliwer Wrobel dished out 18 assists, while Greg Bodus tallied the lone service ace for the Lions. Both Aidan Feeney and Thijs Van der Wal scooped up five digs apiece. Bodus was also credited with five block assists.
Aiden Roper had a career night with 12 kills and four aces. He fired on a .318 hitting percentage, adding two assists, three digs, and two solo blocks. Morgan Makovec notched six kills on a .455 clip from the middle. Rounding out the offense were Reef Mathis (5), Adam Svendsen (5), Caleb Hammann (3), Cooper Sadleir (2), and Riley Wisniakowski (2). The latter distributed 23 assists and added a pair of aces. Patrick Gresham tied the match-lead with five digs. Makovec was a part of four rejections at the net.
Emmanuel hit .032 as a team with 20 kills and 18 errors on 62 total attempts. Tusculum hit .282 with 35 kills, 15 errors, and 71 total attacks. The Pioneers led the Lions in assists (31-19), service aces (7-1), digs (21-19), and total blocks (8-6).
The first set was mildly contested with two ties and one lead change, all within the first five points. Emmanuel won the first score, but Tusculum responded with a 5-1 spurt. The TU defense held firm as the Lions hit -.238. EU closed the gap back to one (6-5) but four-straight scores, including a pair of Roper aces, widened the edge. Two kills by Mathis sparked a 4-1 rally as the TU lead continued to grow. An 8-2 stretch eased the Pioneers to a first set victory.
The second set was the most competitive, featuring nine ties and four lead changes. The Lions had their only positive offense frame, hitting .280, while the Pioneers countered with three aces. Neither team had more than a two-point edge until Emmanuel rattled off four-straight points to force a Tusculum timeout at 11-8. TU was able to retake the advantage for good at 15-14, holding the lead for the remainder of the match. The Lions made a late run to train 23-22 but Makovec and Wisniakowski combined for a kill and a block.
Tusculum made easy work of Emmanuel in the final frame, hitting .391 with 14 kills. The Pioneers started the third set on a 6-1 run, growing to a double-digit lead at 17-7. TU led 24-13 but Emmanuel fought off three set-points until Roper clinched the match.
The Pioneers make the quick turnaround to host Erskine on Friday (Jan. 16) night at 6 p.m.
