ASHLAND, Va. – In a suspenseful four-set ODAC Final, #17 Randolph-Macon punched its ticket to the NCAA Division III Tournament with a victory over Eastern Mennonite.
Score: #17 Randolph-Macon 3, Eastern Mennonite 1 (25-21, 25-18, 23-25, 25-22)
Venue: Ashland, Va. // Crenshaw Gymnasium // Randolph-Macon College
Records: #17 Randolph-Macon (30-4, 16-0 ODAC); Eastern Mennonite (13-19, 6-10 ODAC)
How it Happened
- Kody Rogan (Chesapeake, Va./Hickory) found Phillip Van Essendelft (Chesapeake, Va./Hickory) to start the scoring for RMC, before a kill from Bryce Matthews (Chesterfield, Va./Clover Hill) and service ace from Ian Wagenhauser (Glen Allen, Va./Deep Run) put the Yellow Jackets ahead, 6-2. While both airborne, Rogan found Van Essendelft for a kill before another rip from Wagenhauser forced an EMU timeout, as the visitors trailed 5-11. While the Royals got within two, down 12-14, the Lemon and Black used kills form Wagenhauser and Matthews to spark a 4-0 run, leading 18-12. EMU used a string of blocks and a service ace to bring the set to 20-22, forcing a timeout from the home team. Out of the break, Rogan delivered a clutch service ace, piloting RMC to a 25-21 set one win.
- A service ace from Landon Brinkley (Norfolk, Va./Norfolk Christian) gave Randolph-Macon the first point of the set, and thanks to a kill from Nathan Karluk (Midlothian, Va./Midlothian), the Lemon and Black took a 4-3 lead. Then, Wagenhauser caught fire, as back-to-back service aces forced an EMU timeout, as it trailed 4-9. Even though the Royals scored out of the break, Brinkley ended a long rally with a kill to shift the pressure back to RMC, as it led 12-6. They then extended the lead to 17-10, as a result of heads-up kills from Matthews and Rogan. It was then Matthews who had the hot hand, as he dropped two kills in to surge his team out to a 20-13 advantage. En route to taking a 25-18 set two victory, Rogan passed over his head to a trailing Matthews before Wagenhauser helped end the set, resulting in two highlight reel plays.
- Wagenhauser started set two with finesse, lobbing two kills and a block in for the early 4-2 edge. The senior had it going with another service ace, but it was Eastern Mennonite finding its best momentum of the match to knot set three at seven. RMC continued in a close set and used a kill from Matthews and a handful of attack errors from the Royals to take a 15-13 lead at the media timeout. The Royals fought all the way back with back-to-back kills to hold an 18-17 advantage for just one point, until a service ace tied the set, 18-18. To break a back-and-forth battle, Wagenhauser stepped up and delivered a well-placed kill to create a 20-19 lead, resulting in another EMU timeout. The visiting team dug deep and strung together three-straight points, forcing an RMC timeout as it was down, 22-24. Karluk delivered a massive to kill to bring the set back within one, but EMU was able to win the third set, 25-23.
- EMU got its best start in set four, as it took a 4-1 lead, but an overpass kill from Matthews and a kill from Wagenhauser evened the score, 5-5. The set remained deadlocked, as the two programs traded points until a big solo block from Karluk and three consecutive smashes from Matthews put the home squad ahead, 15-11. The Royals used two blocks to tie it up at 17, but the Yellow Jackes responded in the form of Van Essendelft, who had a kill and a service ace. The pressure was too much for the Royals to handle, as kills from Matthews and Rogan gave RMC the ODAC title in a 25-23 set four victory.
Inside the Numbers
- Randolph-Macon led Eastern Mennonite in kills (52-to-47), assists (54-to-33), digs (49-to-35) and aces (six-to-five).
- The Yellow Jackets also held the advantage in hitting percentage, securing the category .291-to-.205.
- RMC's 57 kills in today's contest marks its second-highest this season.
- Matthews led the match with a career-high 23 kills, as he also had 13 digs, good for the second-highest of his career.
- Wagenhauser finished second in the match with 18 kills, as he also poured in 10 digs and four aces. His 10 digs ties his career high and his 18 kills is a new season-high.
- Rogan led the match with 49 assists, as the senior also added nine digs.
- Van Essendelft and Rogan led the match with four blocks each.
For the Record
- After posting 57 kills in the four sets of play, RMC now has a single-season program record 1,382 kills.
- Randolph-Macon finished the regular season and ODAC Tournament with a 30-4 record. With its 30 wins, the team remains with the most wins in the country.
- With his 49 assists, Rogan reached 926 in his season, locking up a new single-season career-high.
- With his 38 attacks, Wagenhauser tied his season-high in total attacks, as he did previously against Eastern Mennonite,
All-Tournament Team
Ezekiel Awkward, Eastern Mennonite
Derek Diaz, Eastern Mennonite
Bryce Matthews, Randolph-Macon
Kody Rogan, Randolph-Macon
Ian Wagenhauser, Randolph-Macon
Jackson Rutkowski, Roanoke
James Young, Virginia Wesleyan
Up Next
#17 Randolph-Macon will wait to see the time, location and opponent of its next match after the NCAA Division III Men's Volleyball selection show at 10:00 a.m. on Monday, April 13.
