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CHARLOTTE, N.C. – After playing in nine straight matches away from home, the Queens University of Charlotte men's volleyball team returns to the friendly confines of Curry Arena for a tri-match with St. Andrews University and Alderson Broaddus University on Friday.
Nine of the team's final 13 matches will be played in the Levine Center where the Royals picked up the program's first win against Belmont Abbey College on January 12 in a five-set thriller. Queens came away with two victories on its road swing, defeating Lees-McRae College and Erskine College by identical 3-1 scores.
Currently, freshman
Tristan Santoyo leads a balanced Royals attack with 75 kills, followed by 74 kills from graduate transfer
Jake Dube and 73 kills from
Marco Vecellio. Freshman
Aleksandar Perisic chips in 65 kills of his own with a.257 hitting percentage while ranking second among NCAA competitors with 1.32 blocks per set.
Freshman
Jack Mitchner has increased his assists per set average to 6.98, thanks in large part to a 42-assist performance against Erskine in early-February. Fellow freshman
Conner Nagaki is third among NCAA qualifiers with 3.00 digs per set after taking over the Royals' primary libero role.
On Friday, Queens welcomes St. Andrews of the NAIA and Alderson Broaddus, a fellow NCAA Division I-II program that competes as an independent. Queens and Alderson Broaddus are two of four independent teams in the country without a conference affiliation.
The Knights of SAU are 5-4 overall after winning its last three matches, including a four-set victory over Coker College in the team's most recent contest.
Freshman outside Diego Hernandez leads the Knights with 105 kills (3.39/set), followed by 96 kills (3.20/set) and a .258 hitting percentage from senior outside Robin Imar. Imar also leads the team with 1.90 digs per set and 18 service aces, while sophomore setter Jackson Stark directs the offense with 9.72 assists per set.
The Battlers of ABU are 2-9 on the season, with one of the team's wins coming in a 3-2 triumph over the Royals on February 2 in Philippi, W. Va. Alderson Broaddus is currently looking to turn around a three-match losing streak.
Senior outside Francisco Cabrera is Alderson Broaddus' leading attacker with 124 kills (2.88/set) and ranks second on the team with 1.74 digs per set. Sophomore Timothy McIntosh is the team's top defender, registering 2.23 digs per set as the primary libero.
Queens and St. Andrews are scheduled to play at Noon, followed by a 2 p.m. matchup with the Knights and Alderson Broaddus. The day ends with a 7 p.m. contest between the Royals and Battlers as the rematch completes the regular season series between the two teams.
Live statistics and a live online broadcast will be provided by the Queens Athletic Department and the Queens Sports Network for both matches involving the Royals.
