Statesmen Rally to Secure 3-1 Victory Over UHSP
St. Louis, Mo.–The Statesmen men’s volleyball team battled back from an early deficit to secure a 3-1 victory over the University of Health Sciences and Pharmacy (UHSP) in Heart of America Athletic Conference action Saturday.
William Penn (13-8, 10-4 Heart) had a slow start but quickly regained control to dominate the match, winning with set scores of 20-25, 27-25, 25-17, and 25-19. UHSP (9-14, 5-10 Heart) put up a strong fight early on, but the Statesmen ultimately took charge in the later sets.
The first set saw UHSP jump out to a 6-3 lead. The teams traded points back and forth until the Eutectics extended their lead to 17-12 with a 5-2 run. William Penn struggled to find their rhythm and couldn’t recover from the five-point deficit, with UHSP closing out the set 25-20.
Set two was a back-and-forth affair. The score was tied at 8-8 and remained close until 25-25. The teams exchanged points, but William Penn surged in the final moments, clinching the set 27-25 with a pair of decisive points.
In set three, the Statesmen found their groove, jumping out to a 12-6 lead. They continued to build momentum, using a 7-4 scoring run to push their advantage to 19-10. UHSP mounted a brief comeback with a 7-6 streak, but William Penn held firm and sealed the set 25-17.
The fourth set was tightly contested early on, with the Statesmen holding a slim 4-3 lead. From there, William Penn went on a 4-0 run to stretch their lead to 8-3. The teams continued to trade points, but the Statesmen pulled away again, leading 17-11. UHSP fought back with a 4-0 rally, but William Penn responded with a 4-1 run to close out the match with a 25-19 victory.
William Penn dominated offensively, registering a 59-37 advantage in kills. The Statesmen hit .254 as a team, while UHSP struggled with a .046 hitting percentage. Both teams had their share of errors, with William Penn committing 23 and UHSP tallying 31.
Ben Cemeno-Castillo (Jr., Joliet, Ill., Business Management) led the charge with 15 kills, while Britten Beallis (Jr., Naperville, Ill., Sports Management) followed closely with 13 kills on an impressive .480 hitting percentage. Ben Brinkman (Fr., Appleton, Wis., Undecided) and Josh Bluhm (Fr., Lockport, Ill., Software Engineering) each contributed 11 kills.
Brady Zell (Fr., Wales, Wis., Business Management) directed the offense with 42 assists and added 15 digs. João Gabriel Filippelli (So., Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Business Management) chipped in 12 digs, while Cemeno-Castillo and Luke Luckfield (Sr., Honolulu, Hawaii, Software Engineering) each added seven digs.
Brinkman also played a key role defensively, registering one solo block and five block assists, helping William Penn to a total of 10 blocks.
“Great team win today,” said Head Coach Luke Bentley. “UHSP is a strong team and our guys did a great job of fighting through adversity to get a win.”
Next Up: The Statesmen will face Graceland in a Heart of America contest next Friday at 7:00 p.m. at the Penn Activity Center.
