CHARLOTTE, N.C. – The Queens University of Charlotte men's volleyball team (10-11, 4-2 IVA) snapped a four-game losing skid by defeating Tusculum University (5-16, 1-4 IVA) on Saturday afternoon inside Curry Arena. Prior to the match, the Royals celebrated their senior class featuring JP Payne and Brandon Grabow. The Royals still have six matches left in the regular season which will be on the road before they host the IVA Championships again on April 22-23.
 
The familiar opponents would open the match tightly contested as the entire first set saw 13 ties and four lead changes. The largest lead of the first set would grow to 15-11 by the Royals, but the visiting Pioneers would proceed to go on a 5-1 run capitalizing on a service error, kill, and three straight aces to even the score 16-16 and forcing Queens head coach Jeremy Price into a timeout. Trailing 24-21, the Royals managed to stay alive with three straight points on a kill from JP Payne and a pair of Tusculum attack errors. The teams would exchanged points until Queens rallied off three consecutive points to take the set 31-29. In the first, Tusculum would record six aces at the service line while the Royals hit .500 with 14 kills.
 
Similar to the first set, the second frame was another battle seeing 11 ties. The largest lead halfway through the set was two by the Royals at 12-10 until the Pioneers went on a 6-1 run to grab the largest lead 16-13. Tusculum would extend the lead to as much as five at 19-14 before the Royals came rumbling back utilizing short rallies. However, the second comeback attempt would fall just short as the Pioneers held on to the 25-23 victory which evened the match 1-1. The offensive attack would flip in the second as the Royals hit .267 with 12 kills while Tusculum struck a team-high .462 with 15 kills.
 
After dropping a tough battle in the second, the Royals gained an early 10-7 lead over the Pioneers. Queens would use a brief 3-0 run to extend the lead to the largest of the set at 13-8 forcing a Tusculum timeout. Queens would come out of the break and maintain their dominance securing the third set 25-22. The Royals would hit .364 with 16 kills while holding the visiting Pioneers to a .257 hitting percentage and 14 kills.
 
In the fourth set, Queens would jump ahead early and maintain a small lead throughout most of the set. Ahead 13-12, Queens would go on a 7-1 run taking a commanding 20-13 lead as they looked to improve to 6-4 inside Curry Arena. The Royals would slam the door shut 25-15 securing the victory 3-1. In the final set, Queens hit .421 with nine kills while Tusculum hit .133 with 12 kills.
 
Three Royals recorded double digit kills, including Jack Brinkman, Stirling Sims, and Daniel Leitao. Brinkman would lead the Royals with 19 kills while Sims and Leitao added 11 each. Senior JP Payne put together a great afternoon with five kills on eight attempts, a pair of solo blocks and assists, and four digs. Fellow senior Brandon Grabow dished out 43 assists while picking up five digs.
 
The Royals will return to the floor on Tuesday, March 29 when they travel to Lees McRae College for a 7:00 p.m. match. The Royals will not return to Curry Arena until the IVA Championships which will be hosted inside Curry Arena April 22-23. Fans can stay tuned for more information on the championships in the coming weeks.
 
Be sure to follow the Royals men's volleyball program on Instagram to stay up to date on all the latest news and updates surrounding the team. Fans are also encouraged to follow Queens Athletics on social media @QueensAthletics to follow all of the Royals sports in action.