FRANKLIN SPRINGS, Ga. – Coming off its first back-to-back victories of 2021, the Lincoln Memorial University men's volleyball team was unable to make it three in a row Saturday night at Emmanuel College. The Railsplitters (3-7) were barely edged in the opening set and earned a dominant set two win but ultimately fell 3-1 as the host Lions (1-5) notched their first win of the season.
 
Sophomore middle/right side hitter Dawson Walker registered a career-high 13 kills in the four-set loss, but it wasn't nearly enough as Emmanuel laid down 51 kills behind a .294 attack. LMU tallied 39 kills across the four sets and swung at a .204 clip as a team but was outdone on the block, 10-7. Both teams claimed six aces and the Lions made 10 or more kills in each set, posting an attack percentage of at least .320 in both the third and fourth sets.
 
Despite being held to a .095 attack percentage in the first set, the Railsplitters led 21-19 before Emmanuel made a late push to take a 1-0 lead in the match with a 25-23 set one win. A quick start by the hosts put the Lions in front 6-3 and Emmanuel would take a 13-9 lead. A 7-2 LMU run gave the Railsplitters a one-point lead at 16-15 and the Blue and Gray went up 21-19 after consecutive kills from Walker. However, LMU would get just two more points in the set as the Lions went on a 5-1 tear to earn a pair of set points. Following an Emmanuel attack error, the Railsplitters committed a service error to give the home team a set advantage.
 
LMU totaled 14 kills in the second set, attacking at a .435 mark and committing just four attack errors. Evening up the match with a 25-18 set two triumph, the Railsplitters rallied from an early 8-4 deficit. A service ace from senior middle hitter Pedro Carvalho got LMU within one at 9-8 and back-to-back kills by senior outside hitter Nico Triana tied things up at 13. Four-straight points highlighted by blocks from Carvalho and sophomore setter Ryan Foy gave the Railsplitters a 17-14 lead and moments later a Triana kill made it 20-15. LMU won the final four points of the set with Triana and Walker rising up for a block to knot the match at 1-1.
 
The Lions hit .320 in the third set and used an extended run for a 25-18 set win after a promising LMU start. The Railsplitters attacked at .273 in the set and went up 8-5 following a kill by sophomore outside hitter Jacob Titus and a Carvalho and Foy block. A Walker kill kept LMU in front at 11-9 but Emmanuel then began a 10-4 run with a Railsplitter serving error. Leading 19-15, the Lions went on a 5-2 run to hold multiple set points at 24-17. Walker would get one more kill before another LMU serving error gave Emmanuel a 2-1 match lead.
 
The Railsplitters were limited to just a .037 attack mark and seven kills in the fourth set with the Lions registering 16 kills behind a .433 attack. Pouncing early, Emmanuel won three of the first four points of the set and took a 9-6 lead. A Lion attack error made it 11-9 but it would the closest LMU would get for the remainder of the night. Emmanuel won four consecutive points to pull ahead 15-9 and three-straight Lion points made it 18-10. The two teams exchanged the following 10 points as Emmanuel remained in front by eight at 23-15. A kill from freshman right side hitter Justin Sharfenaker and a Lion attack error gave some momentum to the Railsplitters, but an Emmanuel kill and an LMU attack error ended the set and match at 25-17.
 
Carvalho and Titus both finished with six kills, while Foy assisted on 28 kills and made a career-high three total blocks. Freshman libero Jacob Miller made a career-high six digs, along with six digs from both Titus and freshman outside hitter Cole Campisano, as Carvalho posted a match-best five total blocks. Campisano also recorded five kills and Triana set a season high with five kills of his own.
 
The Lions got a match-high 16 kills from Aleksa Lakic, who served three aces, and 15 kills from Don Thompson, who earned a team-best four total blocks. Emmanuel's Henrik Westhoff handed out a match-high 36 assists and joined Nickolas Eichenberger for a match-best 10 digs apiece.
 
Up Next…
The Railsplitters will have a nearly two-week break from match action before returning to the volleyball court for competition Friday, Feb. 26 at Queens University of Charlotte. LMU will wrap up its lengthy five-match February road trip the following day on Saturday, Feb. 27 at Limestone in Gaffney, South Carolina.
 
How to Follow
Stay tuned to LMURailsplitters.com, as well as LMU's social media platforms - @LMURailsplitter on Twitter, @LMURailsplitters on Facebook and @lmurailsplitters on Instagram, for complete coverage of Railsplitter volleyball throughout the 2021 season.