Statesmen Outlast Culver-Stockton in Five-Set Battle

Canton, Mo.--The No. 6 William Penn men's volleyball team faced heavy pressure but ultimately secured a 3-2 victory over Culver-Stockton Saturday in Heart of America Athletic Conference play.

William Penn (9-4, 6-3 Heart) defeated the Wildcats (1-15, 0-8 Heart) with set scores of 21-25, 25-16, 25-13, 18-25, and 15-10. The Statesmen posted hitting percentages of .294, .517, .480, .121, and .526, while C-SC attacked at .308, .214, .074, .424, and .200.

The Navy and Gold opened the first set with a slim 8-6 lead before falling behind 11-8. The Statesmen tied the score at 14-14, but Culver-Stockton regained control at 17-16. William Penn continued to push late in the set but could not close the gap as the Wildcats claimed the opener 25-21.

William Penn held a narrow 7-6 edge early in the second set before putting together four unanswered points to extend the lead. The Statesmen maintained control throughout the set, eventually building a commanding 20-10 advantage. Culver-Stockton responded with a 6-4 run, but the Navy and Gold closed out the set to even the match.

The third set followed a similar script early, with William Penn holding a slim 10-8 lead before breaking the set open with a dominant 15-5 run to take a 2-1 advantage in the match.

Pressure returned in the fourth set as the Wildcats surged ahead with a 9-3 lead. The Statesmen attempted to battle back but were unable to erase the deficit, allowing Culver-Stockton to force a deciding set with a 25-18 victory.

Culver-Stockton opened the fifth set with a 6-4 lead before William Penn responded with five unanswered points to seize momentum. The Statesmen later added a 4-1 run to stretch the advantage to 13-7. The Wildcats rallied for a couple of points late, but William Penn closed out the extended contest with a 15-10 win.

Statistically, the Statesmen held a slight 66-59 advantage in kills and benefited from a 22-15 edge in attack errors. William Penn continued to struggle at the service line with 11 errors and five service aces, while Culver-Stockton recorded 10 errors and two aces.

Ben Cemeno-Castillo (Sr., Joliet, Ill., Business Management) and Emilio Spanner (Sr., Sint Eustatius, Sports Management) each recorded 20 kills. Britten Beallis (Sr., Naperville, Ill., Sports Management) added 12 kills with an impressive .800 attack rate, while Tommy Fellows (So., Shorewood, Ill., Exercise Science) finished with 10 kills at a .412 hitting percentage.

Brady Zell (So., Wales, Wis., Business Management) dished out 51 assists, while Joao Gabriel Filippelli (Jr., Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Business Management) recorded 12 digs, and Taylor Brummond (So., Winstead, Minn., Sports Management) followed with 11. The defensive effort was spread across the lineup as Zell added eight digs, while Spanner and Fellows contributed seven and six, respectively.

At the net, the Statesmen totaled 12 block assists compared to 17 for the Wildcats. Beallis led the squad with five block assists.

Next Up: William Penn hosts Mount Mercy in Heart action Tuesday at 7:00 p.m. in the Penn Activity Center.