POST-MATCH PRESS CONFERENCE WITH HEAD COACH JEREMY PRICE
HARROGATE, TENN. – The Queens University of Charlotte men's volleyball team earned the program's first every postseason win on Friday afternoon, defeating Coker College 3-1 (27-25, 25-21, 20-25, 25-20) inside Mary Mars Gymnasium in the semifinals of the IVA Championships.
"I am really proud of our first ever tournament win," said Head Men's Volleyball Coach
Jeremy Price. "It is a real privilege to be able to play for a championship in just the second year of our program."
Queens (10-18) opened the match by hitting a combined .365 across the first two sets of play. The Cobras (5-16) rebounded with a strong defensive effort in the third set to steal a win and keep the match alive.
The fourth set of action saw the Royals open with a 7-2 run, ending with a service ace from senior
Alexander Schinzing. Three unanswered points extended the Queens lead to 13-6 and forced Coker's final timeout of the set.
The Cobras closed the gap to four points late in the frame, but a
Nic Cavallaro kill and Coker service ace sealed the match win for Queens. Cavallaro led all players with 23 kills and hit .386 from the outside.
Schinzing filled up the stat sheet for the Royals, totaling 39 assists, nine total blocks, seven digs and three service aces. Sophomore
JP Payne finished with seven kills and a .438 hitting mark, while fellow sophomore
Tristan Santoyo tallied seven kills of his own and eight digs. Sophomore middle
Cody Nix had nine blocks in the match.
"Alexander [Schinzing] made our offense work tonight and I was please with the offense he ran," Price continued. "Nic [Cavallaro] put up big numbers for the second straight match and JP [Payne] and Tristan [Santoyo] were also effective for us offensively. On defense, Schinzing and Cody [Nix] made a strong blocking combo up front after being beside each other for a few rotations."
The Royals will play the winner of Friday night's second semifinal match between Daemen College and tournament host Lincoln Memorial University in Saturday's finale at 2 p.m.
