Indiana Tech Claims Men's Volleyball Tournament Title

FORT WAYNE, Ind. - (Tournament Page) - Indiana Tech won its first Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference (WHAC) Men's Volleyball Tournament title after defeating Aquinas 3-2 in the Schaefer Center. The host-team kept the streak alive becoming the third top seed in the tournament to win the title.

Tech dropped the first set after leading much of the set. The Warriors held a 22-19 advantage and pushed it to 23-22 when Daniel De La Rosa started started a four-point run for Aquinas to take the win.

In the second set, Tech went up by as many as 10 at 18-10 and pushed its lead to 21-12 capped by back-to-back kills from Dante Siracusa. Aquinas won the next six of eight points to close the gap when Siracusa put Tech at match point (24-18). The Saints held firm on three match points until Daynte Stewart's kill evened the set count.

The Warriors again jumped to a comfortable lead in the third set after scoring the first three points and built an 18-10 cushion. Six points later, IT was up by 12. Aquinas scored two quick points, but the Warriors closed out the set with back-to-back kills for a 2-1 lead.

The fourth set went back and forth with nine ties before either team hit 11 points. Aquinas got kills from Darnell Eudoxie and Joshua Boothroyd for a two-point lead and held on to knot the match at 2-2.

The deciding set saw IT exapnd a 4-1 lead to 8-3 until the Saints took the next four points. Chase Christiansen provided a little cushion with a pair of kills for a 10-7 lead, but Aquinas answered with kills from Boothroyd and De La Rosa along with an attack error on IT to tie it up. Winning four of the next five points, Tech was at match point when Chase Gil made it 14-12. The Warriors answered when Brandon Jones set up Stewart for the set and match.

All-Time Tournament Champions
2019: (1) Lourdes
2020: No Tournament - COVID
2021: (1) Lourdes
2022: (1) Indiana Tech