Royals Fall to Geneva in Season Opener

SPRINGFIELD, Ohio – The EMU men’s volleyball team kicked off its 2023 season on Friday, traveling to Ohio for a trio of matches.

The Royals put up a fight in their opening bout but, unfortunately, fell to the Golden Tornadoes 3-0 (19-25, 23-25, 19-25).

Records: EMU 0-1, 0-0 CVC | Geneva 1-0, 0-0 AMCC

Highlights

Set One

David Ward and Nate McGhee got the Royals on the board first, sandwiching a Geneva kill with a pair of their own, giving EMU a 2-1 lead. With things tied at three, Geneva went on a 5-0 run to pull ahead before EMU scored three of the next four from an attack error and Ward/McGhee kills. EMU kept things close, trailing by no more than four to 20-17, before the Golden Tornadoes picked up three straight to move ahead 23-17. A kill from Ben Childers and a block from Childers and Tyler Oaks cut the Geneva lead to five but kill gave GC a 1-0 lead.

Set Two

EMU fell behind 6-4 to start the second before kills from Walter Spurlock and Christopher Webster, along with a Webster ace, gave them a one-point lead. With things tied at 12, EMU picked up two straight to take a 14-12 lead. Geneva was able to tie things back up and the set continued its trend of ties until a GC momentum shift gave them a 22-18 lead, forcing a Royals timeout. Out of the break, two kills from Ward, two from Spurlock and a McGhee ace highlighted a 5-1 EMU run, tying things at 23 and causing Geneva to take a timeout. But out of the timeout, the Golden Tornadoes picked up a pair of kills to take the set, and a 2-0 lead.

Set Three

Once again it was the Royals taking an early lead, highlighted by kills from Childers and Eric Martin. Geneva then went on a 9-5 run, taking a 12-7 lead before EMU answered with momentum of their own, using kills from Ward, Childrers, McGhee and a Ward/Martin block, to pull within one, 15-14. Then it was a run of threes as Geneva picked up three straight, followed by three straight from EMU and then another 3-0 run from Geneva, causing the Royals to call timeout trailing 21-17. The Royals were able to pick up two more points after the timeout, but the Golden Tornadoes finished with two straight to pick up the final set, and match, win.

Statistical Leaders

McGhee – 15 kills, 7 digs, 3 assists

Spurlock – 7 kills, 7 digs

Oaks – 30 assists, 8 digs

What’s Next

EMU will have to rebound quickly as they’ll have a…