FREDERICK, Md. — The Hood College men's volleyball team fought late against the Mustangs but dropped the MAC Commonwealth match to Stevenson 3–0 (25–12, 25–12, 25–19), on Thursday evening at the Volpe Athletic Center in Woodsboro Bank Arena.
Inside the Box Score
Blake Catts (Rehoboth Beach, Del./Cape Henlopen) had seven kills with the highest hitting percentage on the squad just under 30 percent.
Cameron Nugent (Manahawkin, N.J./Southern Regional) had 21 assists on the afternoon.
How it Happened
Stevenson seized control with a decisive 10–3 run early in the first set, using strong blocking and efficient offense to build a 12–5 advantage. Hood briefly halted the momentum behind kills from Catts and
Ryan Elias (Washington, D.C./Washington Leadership Academy), but the Mustangs extended the lead with another 6–2 surge to go in front 18–7. Stevenson closed the frame on a steady run, taking the set 25–12 despite Hood generating seven kills in the opener.
Hood settled in after a quick run from the visitors in the second and matched points over the next few rallies, highlighted by Catts capitalizing on a Nugent assist to make it 5–3. The Mustangs responded rattling off a 13–4 run fueled by aggressive serving and transition offense to stretch the margin to 18–7. Hood fought for a a 7–5 closing run behind Catts and
Sean Seely (Bethpage, N.Y./Bethpage) late in the set, but Stevenson finished on to secure another 25–12 decision.
The Blazers showed their strongest outing in the third set. After Stevenson jumped out to an early lead, Hood answered with a 5–3 run, highlighted by a
Joel Wantz (Taneytown, Md./Francis Scott Key) service ace and a Catts kill, trimming the deficit to 7–5. The teams exchanged points through the middle of the set, with Hood tying the score multiple times behind improved serving pressure and kills from Casas, Seely, and Elias. The Blazers surged again, using back-to-back points to keep the set within reach and later earned three service aces in the frame and cut the deficit to 19–18 following a Seely kill, marking Hood's closest point of the match. Stevenson regrouped to pull away for the 25–19 set win.
Up Next
The squad will host Regent and Penn State Schuylkill for a trimatch this Saturday, April 4 to celebrate Senior Day and their final games of the season with the first match set for 11 a.m. against Regent before taking on the Nittany Lions after the middle match in Woodsboro Bank Arena.
