Hawks Drop Two Five-Set Matches in California

Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 QUINCY, Ill. - The Quincy University men's volleyball team opened the season on Friday (Jan. 8) with a pair of matches against stiff competition at the Asics Invitational in Santa Barbara, Calif. The Hawks took both No. 9 UCSB and California Baptist to five sets, but the Hawks ultimately dropped the decisive fifth set in both matches by 15-10 scores. QU wraps up play on the West coast on Saturday (Jan. 9) at 6 p.m. CT when it takes on No. 4 Long Beach State.

Stats were not immediately available for Friday's nightcap against Cal Baptist. The story will be updated when statistics are available.

No. 9 UCSB 3, Quincy 2 (25-20, 25-17, 21-25, 23-25, 15-10)

The Hawks rallied from two sets down in their season opener to extend their match against No. 9 UC-Santa Barbara to a fifth set, but the Gauchos won the finale, 15-10, to clip the Hawks.

The Gauchos (2-1), coming off a 3-1 road win over defending national champion Loyola-Chicago, claimed wins in the first two sets by hitting .370. The Hawks still hit .209 in that stretch, but could not build momentum as the hosts got into rhythm offensively.

UCSB built a 7-3 lead in Set 3 before senior Chris Chappelle (Los Angeles, Calif./Westchester/San Diego City) broke the string with four straight service points to tie the frame at 7-7.

The game was tied again at 17-17 before a kill by junior Jarrod Kelso (Hilliard, Ohio/Hilliard Darby) gave the Hawks the lead for good. Junior setter Thane Fanfulik (Hilliard, Ohio/Hilliard Darby) put down a kill to give QU a 21-18 edge. After a USCB timeout, Kelso's kill pushed the lead to four points. Chappelle gave the Hawks the win with his fifth kill of the stanza. He and Kelso combined for nine kills in the set.

In Set 4 it was Kelso and senior Ian Lawson (Glen Ellyn, Ill./Glenbard West) who provided much of the damage, combining for 10 kills in the tightly-contested game.

The Hawks used a 5-0 run to take a 24-19 lead over the Gauchos late in the set. Lawson had two kills during the run while senior Jack Gamache (St. Charles, Mo./Francis Howell Central) added a service ace. UCSB put a slight scare into the Hawks by scoring the next three points, but Kelso's kill extended the match to a fifth set.

Fanfulik's kill pulled the Hawks to within one point, 4-3, before the Gauchos scored six straight to take a commanding 10-3 lead. The Hawks brought it back to within four points with Chappelle serving, but UCSB triumphed in the end.

Kelso paced the Hawks with 13 kills (.476). Lawson (12 kills, .346) and Chappelle (10 kills, .364) joined him in double figures. Fanfulik had a strong game all around, helping Quincy hit .299 as a team and dishing out 38 assists to go with seven kills (.750) and seven blocks. Sophomore libero Simon Bruckner (Lincoln, Neb./Pius X) led the back row with 12 digs.

The Hawks held UCSB to a .250 hitting percentage and out-blocked the host, 12.5 to 6.5. The Gauchos led in kills, 55-50. Jacob Delson led them with 16 kills in the match.

California Baptist 3, Quincy 2 (25-21, 25-27, 25-22, 11-25, 15-10)

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Players Mentioned

#3 Simon Bruckner: L; 5' 10"; Sophomore

#2 Chris Chappelle: RS; 6' 2"; Senior

#19 Thane Fanfulik: S; 6' 5"; Junior

#23 Jack Gamache: OPP; 6' 4"; Senior

#20 Jarrod Kelso: MB; 6' 7"; Junior

#8 Ian Lawson: OH; 6' 7"; Senior

Players Mentioned

#3 Simon Bruckner
: 5' 10"; Sophomore
: L

#2 Chris Chappelle
: 6' 2"; Senior
: RS

#19 Thane Fanfulik
: 6' 5"; Junior
: S

#23 Jack Gamache
: 6' 4"; Senior
: OPP

#20 Jarrod Kelso
: 6' 7"; Junior
: MB

#8 Ian Lawson
: 6' 7"; Senior
: OH