Jacksonville, Florida-A motivated group of Tigers took to the floor on Thursday evening as Edward Waters matched up with Central State in a rematch of last season's SIAC Men's Volleyball Tournament Championship Game. The Purple & Orange were able to get a small measure of revenge as they dominated the Marauders in four sets, winning 3-1 (25-18, 25-23, 17-25, 25-16) to gain the early edge in conference play and move their early season winning streak to three in a row.
Edward Waters (3-1, 1-0 SIAC) started the first set out by taking the first four points of the match, ultimately starting out on 7-2 run. Central State (7-11, 0-1 SIAC) later rallied to close the gap to two at 15-13, but EWU was able to finish the set on a 10-5 run to take a 1-0 lead. The Marauders in set two dictated the pace early rolling out to a 7-3 lead. Edward Waters was able to methodically chop the lead down and get the set squared at 12-12. A quick two point rally gave the Purple and Orange a 15-13 advantage but CSU made things interesting later in the set, once again tying the match at 19-19. EWU went on a 6-4 run to close things out and take a 2-0 lead. Central State showed their championship mettle in the third set as they took control and advantage of EWU miscues, holding the Tigers to a -.025 hitting percentage to win the set and make it a 2-1 advantage for the Tigers. However, EWU returned the favor in the fourth set hitting a match best .381, closing the set out 25-16 and the match 3-1.
For the match, the Tigers racked up a season and program best 12 service aces, while hitting .195 and holding Central State to a .171 hitting percentage. Sophomore Kaelen Ingram was a man on a mission in the match, finishing with a match high 17 kills and career best six service aces. Fellow sophomore Evens Edouard was also dominant in the match with 15 kills, one service ace, one block, and six digs. Redshirt Freshman Bryan Pepen chipped in with eight kills for EWU as well. Kenyon Haynes finished with a double-double effort of 32 assists and 11 digs, while Dillon Taylor led the way in blocks with two.
The Tigers will continue SIAC play as they will hit the road to face Kentucky State in a doubleheader on Saturday, February 25th starting at 1:00pm.
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