Lynx Make Strong Showing at Conference Championships

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[April 11, 2017]  Over the weekend, both Lincoln College Men's Volleyball teams participated in the Mid-West Plains Volleyball Conference (MWPVC) Championship Tournament held at the University of Missouri. The event featured 25 college and university club teams from throughout the mid-west.

The LC "A" team got off to a slow start during pool play and dropped their opening match to Kansas University in three sets 17-25, 25-21, 13-15. The loss did not discourage the Lynx as they were able to regroup and run off four straight wins to eventually claim first place in their pool and a chance to play for the tournament championship in the Gold Division on Sunday. Their hot streak included victories over University of Missouri "B" (25-21, 25-23), Missouri S&T (19-25, 25-18, 15-9), Maryville (25-11, 25-15), and Washington University (25-20, 16-25, 15-12).

In Gold Division single-elimination play on Sunday, Lincoln fought hard, but could not overcome the Nebraska "A" team. The Lynx dropped the first set to Nebraska 25-19, but bounced back to take set two 27-25. In set three, Nebraska got off to a strong start and led all the way for a 15-8 victory. Lincoln would have to settle for a fifth place finish overall.

Outstanding performances for LC "A" in this event were turned in by sophomore outside hitters Kyle Murphy (Itasca) and Corey Poindexter (Overland, MO). The duo combined to lead the Lynx in kills (64) and service points (45). Sophomore Bryan Orellana of Chicago dished out a team high 88 set assists while fellow setter Greg Scott (North Chicago) had 59. Middle hitters Deantrius Coleman (North Chicago) and Michael Wesley (North Chicago) were strong at the net and combined for a total of 36 blocks. High-flying right side hitter Charles Carter was effective for the Lynx as well, recording 25 total kills and 11 blocks. Liberos Dylan Russin and Mike Konczal, both from Blue Island, were steady influences on the defense and serve receive game for LC. Konczal led all Lynx with 47 digs and Russin added 34. Orellana and Coleman received All-Conference Honorable mention recognition after the event.

Lincoln "A" finishes their regular season with a record of 26-18. The team will now prepare to play in the National Club Volleyball Federation (NCVF) Tournament which begins this Thursday in Kansas City, Missouri.

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Middle hitter Michael Wesley swinging for the match-winning kill during pool play against LC rival Missouri S&T
 

The Lincoln College "B" team also played in the Conference Championship and went 1-4 on day one. The third place finish in their pool placed them in the Bronze Division on Sunday where they picked up wins over Benedictine (25-22, 25-11) and SIU-E (25-13, 25-21) to advance to the Bronze Final Match where they faced Lewis University B. LC took the first set 25-13 behind an eleven-point run of serves from setter Jake Fleming of Oak Lawn. However, in set two the Lynx had troubles in serve receive and came up short on several long rallies which gave the momentum back to Lewis. Lewis would take set two 25-16 and go on to win set three 15-8.

LC Coach Mark Tippett: Both of our teams competed well in this event which is a satisfying way to end the Conference season. Our A team had to battle the top teams in the Conference and they showed a lot of heart and mental toughness along the way. I believe they are ready to compete well in the National Tournament, and I am looking forward to seeing how they compare to teams outside of our region. Our B team showed progress as well. They proved they have the ability to compete at a high level, but they had trouble sustaining the level of play needed to win consistently. They are a young group and, hopefully, they take the lessons learned this year and continue to improve.

[Mark Tippett]

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