RedStorm sweeps Eagles, stops slide

Rio Grande Sports Information
     MIDWAY, Ky. - It might have been anything but easy, but the University of Rio Grande men's volleyball team finally put an end to its extended losing skid.
     The RedStorm outlasted host Midway University in three hard-fought sets and topped the Eagles by scores of 25-22, 27-25, 28-26 in their Mid-South Conference opener, Friday night, at Marshall Gymnasium.
     Rio Grande improved to 3-7 overall and snapped a five-game losing streak, which also eclipsing its win total from all of last season - the first of the program's existence.
     Midway dropped to 3-3 overall and 0-2 in the MSC.
     Rio trailed just twice in the opening set - both times by one point - yet never led by more than two points itself until a late 3-0 scoring spurt produced a 24-20 advantage.
     The Eagles recorded the next two winners, including a service ace by Victor Bazzo, but Bazzo followed up with a service error to give the RedStorm the early match lead.
     In set two, Rio Grande never trailed and led by as many as seven points, 21-14, following a kill by junior Caden Donaldson (Jackson, OH), but Midway reeled off seven straight points to forge the first of what would be four late ties.
     The last of the deadlocks came at 25-all after a kill by Bazzo, but a service error by the Eagles and a subsequent kill by Rio sophomore Sam Kaylor (Lewis Center, OH) gave the RedStorm the set and a commanding match lead.
     Midway hung tight in set three, yet didn't enjoy a lead until an attack error by Rio sophomore Griffin Smith (Trenton, OH) gave the hosts a 15-14 cushion.
     The Eagles twice pushed their lead to as many as three points, including 22-19 following a kill by Joey Boujaoude, but couldn't close things out.
     Midway failed to capitalize on three set point opportunities, including 26-25, when an attack error by Jonathan McGuyer tied things up and the RedStorm followed with two more points - one on a service ace by sophomore Tyler Miller-Bross (Loveland, OH) and the other on a kill by Kaylor to wrap up the match in a straight sets sweep.
     Donaldson led Rio with 14 kills and Kaylor added 10 of his own, helping head coach Nick Rawls' squad to a .277 attack percentage (39 kills, 11 errors, 101 swings) - the best single-game mark in program history.
     Freshman Mitch Bartecki (New Lenox, IL) had 30 assists in the winning effort, while sophomore Bobby Meifert (Bolingbrook, IL) had 10 digs and Miller-Bross had three service aces.
     Smith and sophomore Ethan Johnson (Hamilton, OH) had four block assists each.
     Bazzo had 15 kills to lead Midway, while Jai'Den Chinnis had 10 kills of is own. Bazzo also tied Stephen Tippenhauer with two service aces.
     Daniel Cogo had 33 assists for the Eagles, who finished with a .227 swing percentage (39 kills, 17 errors, 97 attacks), while Colton Marsh and McGuyer had 12 and 10 digs, respectively.
     Midway did not record a block of any kind.
     Rio Grande is slated to return to action next Wednesday when it travels to Georgetown (Ky.) College for another MSC contest.
     First serve is set for 6 p.m. at the Davis-Reid Alumni Gym.