SYLVANIA, OHIO – In the first match of a three-match road trip to the Midwest, the Queens University of Charlotte men's volleyball team suffered a 3-2 (25-21, 25-23, 13-25, 19-25, 15-11) at the hands of Lourdes University.
 
Lourdes (1-0), the sixth-ranked team in the latest NAIA Men's Volleyball Poll, won the opening two sets of the match to take an early 2-0 lead. Queens (1-2) staved off elimination by winning the third and fourth sets, hitting .360 across the two frames to force a deciding fifth set.
 
The final set of action opened with a 4-1 run by the Gray Wolves before the Royals used three unanswered points to even the score at 4-all. With the set once again tied, this time at 5-all, senior Nic Cavallaro recorded back-to-back kills to put Queens in front by two midway through the frame.
 
The lead changed hands three more times down the stretch, but Lourdes ended the match with a 5-1 run to secure the win on its home floor.
 
In total, Queens collected a program record 17 total blocks, led by nine blocks from senior JP Payne and seven from sophomore Brandon Grabow. Payne finished the match with nine kills from the middle and Grabow dished out 37 assists as the Royals hit .205 on offense.
 
Sophomore Ananias Hayes had a career-high 13 kills and hit .344 on the pin, while Cavallaro collected seven kills and a .353 hitting mark.
 
Queens continues its trip tomorrow when it takes the court against Lewis University of the MIVA at 7 p.m. in Romeoville, Illinois.