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Saint Xavier University

Official Athletics Website of the Saint Xavier University Cougars

MVB_NAIA_Nationals_5_1_25
1
Grand View GRAND VI 19-8
3
Winner Saint Xavier (IL) SAINT XA 30-0
Grand View GRAND VI
19-8
1
Final
3
Saint Xavier (IL) SAINT XA
30-0
Winner
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Grand View GRAND VI 25 20 19 23 (1)
Saint Xavier (IL) SAINT XA 18 25 25 25 (3)

Game Recap: Men's Volleyball |

No. 2 SXU Advances to NAIA Semifinals after 3-1 win over No. 7 GVU

Cedar Rapids, Iowa – For the second consecutive season, the No. 2 ranked Saint Xavier University men's volleyball team (29-0/12-0 CCAC) advanced out of pool play and into the NAIA Men's Volleyball National Championship Tournament Semifinals after a hard-fought 3-1 victory (18-25, 25-20, 25-19, 25-23) over No. 7 Grand View University (Iowa) Thursday afternoon at the Alliant Energy PowerHouse in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. The Cougars are the first team to win their pool as Pool C finished in a three-way tie with each team going 1-1. Senior opposite hitter/setter Matt Pennala (Long Beach, Calif./Long Beach City/St. John Bosco) led SXU with a match-high tying 18 kills, adding nine digs, two assists and two blocks. Sophomore setter Cameron Daniels (Omaha, Neb./Millard West) paced the offense with his second straight 50-assist match, collecting 51. He added nine digs, three service aces and two blocks (one solo). It was the second year in row that Saint Xavier defeated Grand View to reach the semifinals after the Cougars won in three sets in 2024.
  • Redshirt senior outside hitter Vejas Cuplinskas (Riverside, Ill./Riverside Brookfield) provided a spark for SXU, coming away with 14 kills on a .478 attack percentage (14-3-23). He also had three blocks and a pair of digs.
  • Sophomore outside hitter Caydann Cox (Jamestown, N.D./Jamestown/Jamestown) tallied double-digit kills as well, totaling 10. He recorded eight digs, a match-best five aces and a block.
  • Graduate student middle blocker Drew Ehlers (Plainfield, Ill./Plainfield North) was efficient at the net with six kills on a .500 attack percentage (6-1-10), a team-leading six blocks, a dig and a service ace. He now has 101 blocks on the season, becoming just the second player in program history to post 100 or blocks in a season, joining former standout Sam Kull (2013-15) who also had 101 blocks in 2013 and the team record of 119 blocks in 2015.
  • Junior libero Andres Velez (Toa Baja, Puerto Rico/St. Francis) anchored the defense, collecting a match-high 20 digs and adding five assists. It was the second time this season that he has had 20 or more digs in a match.
  • Senior middle blocker Alessandro Gianotti (Desio, Italy/BYU/Leonardo Da Vinci) registered seven kills on a .429 attack percentage (7-1-14) with three digs and two blocks.
  • Junior opposite hitter Oskar Krzyzak (Now Sacz, Poland/Szkota Mistrzostwa Sportowego Rzeszow) added three kills, two blocks and a dig, while senior outside hitter Sean Carey (Skokie, Ill./Niles West) chipped in a dig and a kill.
No. 2 Saint Xavier (30-0/12-0 CCAC) plays in the NAIA Men's Volleyball National Championship Tournament Semifinals at 4:00 pm on Friday, May 2. Their opponent will be the winner of the No. 11 Georgetown College (Ky.) vs. No. 6 Missouri Valley College contest at 8:00 am, with the winner facing No. 3 Lawrence Tech University (Mich.) 45 minutes later. The victor of that match faces SXU in the afternoon.
 
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