The Maryland Eastern Shore Hawks men’s volleyball team secured their first home win of the inaugural season by defeating the Virginia Wesleyan Marlins 3-1 at Hytche Athletic Center. The match scores were 25-11, 23-25, 25-15, and 25-17.
In the opening set, the Hawks started strong, scoring ten of the first twelve points with contributions from service aces and kills. After Virginia Wesleyan narrowed the gap to 15-9, Maryland Eastern Shore responded with another scoring surge to close out the set.
The second set was closely contested, featuring thirteen tied scores and four lead changes. The Hawks briefly took a late lead with back-to-back kills but ultimately lost the set as Virginia Wesleyan capitalized on their third set point opportunity.
From the third set onward, Maryland Eastern Shore maintained control of the match. Several players contributed kills as they built a solid advantage and finished off the frame with a decisive run.
In the fourth and final set, Maryland Eastern Shore continued to utilize their depth in attack. Key plays included kills from multiple players and two service aces that helped establish an insurmountable lead before closing out both the set and match.
Hightower tied for team leads in both kills (14) and digs (5). Another player also recorded 14 kills along with three service aces. Mills led UMES in blocks with six as part of a dominant performance that saw them out-block Virginia Wesleyan nine to zero. The team’s setter tallied a match-high 46 assists while two players shared top honors in digs.
Maryland Eastern Shore will next travel to South Carolina for a two-game series against Erskine College starting Thursday, January 22 at 6 p.m. EST. While there will be no broadcast coverage for these matches, live statistics are available at erskinesports.com.
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