CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa – Vanguard was within one point of winning Pool B and advancing to the national semifinals, but could not close out Georgetown (Ky.) in a five-set defeat at the 2024 NAIA Men's Volleyball Championship on Thursday.
The 27-29, 25-23, 25-19, 19-25, 16-18 loss spelled the end of the Blue and Gold's season as well as their quest for a second consecutive Red Banner. VU, the tournament overall No. 2 seed, ended the season at 15-4.
The Tigers improved to 26-6 and move on to face Saint Xavier, the winner of Pool C, in the semifinals on Friday.
Vanguard, which entered the tournament as the nation's leader in attack percentage (.368), hit .167 in set four and .000 in set five. The Lions still led 14-12 in set five with match point, but the Tigers scored six of the final eight points to yank away the victory.
Reza Tahmasebi and Will Anderson accounted for 43 of the team's 63 kills. Tahmasebi was outstanding, delivering a career-high 22 kills on .457 hitting and tying career-bests in digs (10) and service aces (2). It was his first double-double as a Lion.
Anderson posted 21 kills – his fourth 20-kill match this season – but managed to hit just .111 as he had a career-high 15 attack errors. He helped bring the Lions back from an 8-3 deficit in set five, notching three kills and an ace as part of a 6-0 run that wrested away the lead from Georgetown.
Micah Sybesma added seven kills and a team-best six blocks, while Glen Linden III posted five kills and four blocks.
Setter Ryan Smith handed out a season-high 54 assists to go along with two aces and seven digs. VU was without libero Sean Nguyen, and freshman Leilua Kruse filled the role, scooping up a career-high 10 digs.
The Lions won the statistical battle in kills (63-59) and aces (8-4), but the Tigers had more assists (59-58) and digs (41-36). The biggest factor may have been at the net, where the Tigers posted 15.5 blocks to VU's 11.0.
Krzysztof Kowalski collected a match-high 24 kills on .386 hitting, while Ryan Gunn added nine digs for the Tigers.
Georgetown hit .299 as a team.
What Happened?
Set 1 – It was a nip-and-tuck battle throughout as neither team held a lead larger than three points. There were 15 ties and eight lead changes. The Tigers used a 5-0 run to take a 12-9 lead, aided by four consecutive Lion attack errors that led to a timeout.
Vanguard responded with a 7-3 run to retake the lead at 16-15 as Georgetown called its first timeout. The Lions got two kills from Anderson, and one apiece from Tahmasebi and Linden III during the run.
The teams went back and forth until the Tigers had set points at 24-23 and 25-24. Anderson squashed one set point with a kill, and Kowalski's attempt went astray on another.
The Lions had set point at 26-25 and 27-26, but Michael Bak answered with kills for Georgetown both times.
A big block from Adam Szewinski and Ryan Gunn on Andrew Sheveland gave Georgetown another set point at 28-27, and this time Gunn delivered the final blow for the 29-27 victory. Both teams hit well, featuring a .424 (17-3-33) mark for the Tigers and .312 (16-6-32) efficiency from the Lions.
Set 2 – The Tigers clung to a two-point lead at several points early in the set. The two teams combined for seven service errors as the score was tied three times – the last at 12-12 – before Georgetown reeled off three straight points to force a VU timeout.
Georgetown extended the run to 7-2, opening up its largest lead at 19-14. Jacob Van Groningen replaced Sheveland in the lineup, and that triggered the Lions to turn around their fortunes. The Lions roared back with an 8-2 run and grabbed a 22-21 lead. Sybesma teamed with Van Groningen and Anderson on separate points for two crucial blocks, and Smith dropped in a couple of aces.
The Tigers tied the score at 22-22 on a Kowalski kill, and again at 23-23 on Szewinski's solo block.
But the Lions succeeded in finishing out the set at 25-23 victors thanks to consecutive kills from Tahmasebi and Anderson.
Georgetown had its worst hitting percentage (.217) of the match, while the Lions checked in at .259 (12-5-27).
Set 3 – Vanguard clearly played at its best in set three, owning a .393 to .241 advantage in hitting percentage.
There were four early ties, but the Lions took the lead for good with a 4-0 run. Linden III knocked down a kill and teamed up with Van Groningen to reject Kowalski, followed by a Tahmasebi ace and Van Groningen kill.
Armed with an 8-4 lead, the Lions maintained their advantage throughout. Georgetown pulled within 14-12 on a triple block, but VU scored six of the next eight points to extend its advantage to six. Sybesma and Anderson roofed Gunn for the comfortable 20-14 lead.
VU played the side out game from there and Tahmasebi polished off the 25-19 win with a kill.
Set 4 – Georgetown dominated VU just as the Lions did in set three. The Tigers swung at a .333 (10-3-21) clip while the Lions sputtered at .167 (13-8-30). Anderson and Tahmasebi combined for seven attack errors in the set.
The Tigers broke out to a 9-3 lead and never looked back. They eventually led 15-8 following a Bak ace as VU called timeout.
The break calmed VU momentarily as the Lions notched three straight points to trim the deficit to 15-11, triggering a Georgetown timeout. The Lions would get within four again at 16-12 before a 5-1 Tiger run all but sealed the set.
VU trailed 22-18 to provide a faint glimpse of hope for a comeback, but Kowalski's kill extended the Georgetown lead to 23-18. A VU service error ended the set with a 25-19 Georgetown victory in tow.
Set 5 – Hoping to channel the energy of the 2023 team which won its final two matches in five sets, Vanguard struggled in the winner-take-all scenario.
The Lions had an awful start, falling behind 3-0 and 8-3. VU had three straight attack errors to begin the frame.
But Anderson tallied a kill to bring VU within 8-4. He then held court at the service line for five straight points, showing his All-American pedigree. His kill provided VU a 9-8 lead, before Gunn responded with a putaway to knot the score at 9-9.
The teams exchanged points to get to 12-12, when CJ Bride's service error and a terrific solo block from Anderson on Bak gave VU match point. Georgetown called timeout, and got a kill from seldom set Miguel Ariza Vega.
The Lions requested a timeout of their own, but could not find the floor and Bak made them pay as he tied the match at 14-14.
Each team had a match point opportunity – Georgetown at 15-14 and Vanguard at 16-15 – but both teams failed to capitalize.
With the match tied at 16-16, Ariza Vega had a huge solo block and Anderson hit wide as the Tigers prevailed 18-16.
What's Next?: The Lions begin the program's NCAA Division I era as they join the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation beginning with the 2025 season.
