BRISTOL, Tenn. – Playing in their fourth Conference Carolinas Men's Volleyball Championship final for the fourth time and first since 2019, the King University men's volleyball team outlasted top seed North Greenville University on Saturday night. The third seeded Tornado received career nights from
Warren Davis and
Kellan Kennedy to top the Crusaders 3-2 and 15-12 in the fifth set for their second tournament title in program history.
THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: No. 3 King 3, No. 1 North Greenville (25-19, 22-25, 25-22, 30-32, 15-12)
LOCATION: Student Center Complex; Bristol, Tenn.
RECORDS: King 16-15; North Greenville 19-8
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Set
- The Tornado block got off to a hot start as a stuff from Jackson Carroll and Aaron Milstead gave the Tornado a 4-2 lead.
- King gained separation with a 5-0 run that included a block from Davis and Kennedy, a pair of Milstead aces and a kill from Davis as King took an 11-6 lead.
- Another block from Davis and Kennedy stretched the Tornado advantage to 14-7 as King gradually extended their lead.
- The Crusaders made a run to pull within 19-16 before King pulled away down the stretch.
- An AJ Drooker kill eventually gave King the 25-19 win.
Second Set
- King used a pair of 3-0 runs to take a 6-4 lead before the teams started to trade points.
- Following a King 3-0 run, North Greenville scored four straight points to take a 21-19 lead.
- The Crusaders matched each King point down the stretch to take the set 25-21.
Third Set
- A kill from Kennedy, followed by a block from Kennedy and Carroll gave King an early advantage the Tornado held in the early going.
- The Crusaders went on a 5-1 run to even the set before taking a 17-15 lead with a 3-0 spurt.
- King regained the lead with three straight points, and following a Crusader point, closed out the 25-22 win with three consecutive points.
Fourth Set
- North Greenville held the advantage for the majority of the set, but King used a 4-1 run to pull even at 24 as the teams traded points, fighting off six set-point chances.
- King fought of five set points before North Greenville eventually took the set 32-30 to force a fifth set.
Fifth Set
- North Greenville got off to a hot start, taking a 5-2 lead and led 8-5 before three straight King points evened the tally.
- Jack Sarnowski and Kennedy teamed up for a block before a Kennedy kill evened the set.
- Following a North Greenville point, Davis came up with a kill before back-to-back blocks from Drooker and Kennedy gave King an 11-9 advantage.
- Davis' 29th kill gave King a 13-11 lead before a pair of North Greenville attack errors gave King the 15-12 win, taking the match 3-2.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- Davis posted 29 kills, 12 digs and two blocks while Carroll added 15 kills, four blocks and four digs.
- Kennedy added 13 kill and hit .500. He also led the Tornado block with 11 stuffs, including two solo blocks.
- Sarnowski handed out 59 assists and added 10 digs.
- Drooker chipped in with seven kills, five blocks and 11 digs.
- Justin Sawyer led the back row with 12 digs.
FOR THE FOES
- Michael de la Cruz led the way for North Greenville with 20 kills.
- Diego Rosich added 15 kills and nine digs while Emanuel Adames posted 16 kills.
- Jorge Riesgo handed out 61 assists and added seven digs.
- Jacob Brown chipped in with nine kills and a team-high 10 digs.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- The Tornado posted a season-high 15 blocks in the match.
- Davis set a career-high with 29 kills and was named the tournament's most valuable player.
- Kennedy's 11 blocks set a career-high and matched the school record as he was selected to the all-tournament team.
- Sarnowski was also selected to the all-tournament team.
- King now has two Conference Carolinas Tournament titles with the other coming in 2018.
- King will make their second NCAA Men's Volleyball Championship appearance. The other came in 2018 when the Tornado fell at Ohio State University.
- The Tornado are 2-2 in Conference Carolinas Tournament championship matches.
UP NEXT
- The selection show for the NCAA Men's Volleyball Championship is scheduled for Sunday, April 23 at 1:15 p.m. on NCAA.com.
- The Tornado will learn their opponent during the selection show. The championship will be held at George Mason University in Fairfax, Va.
