HARROGATE, Tenn. – Despite not seeing the court for competition in 19 days, the Lincoln Memorial University men's volleyball team returned to match action Thursday night inside historic Mary E. Mars Gymnasium and claimed a straight-set victory over Erskine College. Eager to get back to their winning ways, the Railsplitters (4-7) controlled all three sets and showed composure late to earn their second home win of 2021.
 
Behind 38 kills off a .296 attack percentage, LMU notched set wins of 25-20, 25-16 and 26-24 in its first match in Harrogate since Jan. 30. The Railsplitters limited the visiting Flying Fleet (6-7) to .100 hitting and 29 kills as Erskine committed 21 attack errors.
 
A balanced LMU offensive attack led by freshman right side hitter Justin Sharfenaker, sophomore outside hitter Jacob Titus and senior middle hitter Pedro Carvalho kept the pressure on the Fleet. Racking up 29 kills in the first two sets, the Railsplitters attacked at a .458 mark in the second set after tallying 15 kills and swinging at .313 in the opening set.
 
After trailing 5-2 early in the first set, an 8-2 run put LMU in front 10-7 and the Railsplitters would not trail for the remainder of the set. A Titus kill and service ace followed by an Erskine attack error gave LMU a 21-16 lead before the Railsplitters got their first set point of the night on back-to-back Sharfenaker kills. Another Sharfenaker kill put an end to set one following a pair of Fleet points.
 
All of the match's momentum was secured by LMU with a dominant 11-2 run in the second set. The Railsplitters went up 17-7 following the extensive run and never looked back, finishing off the set with a kill from junior setter AJ Risavy.
 
The third set proved to be much tighter with eight ties as LMU led by no more than four points at any point in the set. Three consecutive Railsplitter points gave the hosts a 7-4 lead early, but the score would become knotted up at 9-9 and 10-all. LMU pushed ahead 16-12 with a 6-2 run and maintained a three-point lead at 20-17 and 21-18 thanks to Erskine errors. A kill by junior outside hitter Logan Kerley and a Carvalho solo block made it 23-19 but the Fleet were not quite done. Four-straight Erskine points tied things up at 23 before the Railsplitters earned their first match point on a Fleet serving error. After a final tie at 24 on a kill by Erskine's Jason Sall, sophomore outside hitter Johansen Negron rose up and drove a kill into the ground on the Fleet's side of the court and LMU clinched the match on an Erskine attack error.
 
Sharfenaker recorded 10 kills while Titus claimed eight and Carvalho seven, to go along with three total blocks, three digs and an ace. Sophomore middle/right side hitter Dawson Walker also made a trio of blocks and the Railsplitters got a match-high 31 assists, three digs and two blocks from Risavy. Freshman libero Attia Soliman picked up five digs on the back line.
 
Kacper Rybarczyk led the way for the Fleet with 11 kills, two aces and eight digs. Erskine's Cole Vigo posted four kills and three total blocks with Edgerrin Austin accounting for five kills.
 
Up Next…
LMU remains at home and welcomes Emmanuel College to Mary Mars Gym next Tuesday for a 7 p.m. affair. The Railsplitters then hit the road for a pair of rescheduled matches next weekend at Queens University of Charlotte Saturday, March 13 and at Limestone University next Sunday, March 14.
 
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.