Yellow Jackets outlast Aquinas for home victory

DEFIANCE, Ohio - The Defiance Yellow Jackets quickly shook off Friday night's home loss by claiming a 3-1 victory (25-22, 25-23, 22-25, 25-23) over the Aquinas Saints at the Karl H. Weaner Center on Saturday afternoon.

In what proved to be one of the tightest matches of the campaign, the Yellow Jackets (3-8, 2-6 WHAC) snapped a 3-game slide for their second conference win while the Saints (2-10, 1-6 WHAC) dropped their sixth in a row.

The Yellow Jackets grabbed the first two sets by 5 points combined, pulling away to lead by as many as 5 points in the first before Aquinas closed the gap late and hit the same stride in the second. In the third, DC led 6-1 before errors piled up with a few timely swings by the Saints to regain control of the set. The two sides traded points into the 20s until Aquinas emerged to extend the match. The fourth set featured 13 ties and neither side led by more than 3 points before DC clinched the match with a game-tying kill by Zack Baker, an ace by Brayden Ingram, and a block by Quinn Silverman and Adam Sutton.

Matthew Schulte sported a team-high 13 kills followed closely by 12 from Thaddeus Setla and 10 by Zack Baker. Adam Sutton delivered 33 assists and Oniel Alvarez had a team-best 20 digs. The Yellow Jackets had 12 total blocks led by Kaden Burgeson with 7 and Setla with 4. 

UP NEXT
DC men's volleyball returns to the court at home next Friday against the Olivet Nazarene Tigers. The first serve at the Karl H. Weaner Center is scheduled for 7 p.m.

-JACKETS-