CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The Queens University of Charlotte men's volleyball team will hit the road for the MIVA Quarterfinals, taking on top-seeded Loyola Chicago in the Windy City on Saturday, April 19 at Gentile Arena. First serve is set for 7 p.m. EST.
The match will be streamed live on ESPN+ and the Marquee Sports Network.
This will mark the third meeting of the season between the two sides, with Loyola earning back-to-back sweeps over the Royals in early April. While the Ramblers enter as the MIVA's regular-season champion, Queens will look to shake things up in its second-ever postseason appearance as a league member.
SCOUTING THE ROYALS (10-19, 2-14 MIVA)
Despite a challenging conference slate, Queens has been solid in their second MIVA season. The Royals notched impressive non-conference wins and battled to five sets with perennial MIVA powers Ball State and Lewis.
Carson Strawbridge leads the offensive charge with 311 kills (3.11 kills per set), followed closely by Matthew Pilch (2.84 kills per set) and Chance Shampine (2.78 kills per set). Cayden Marin directs the offense with 682 assists (8.86 a/s), while Nathan Vaupel (0.94 blocks per set) and Reed Shuey (0.76 blocks per set) bring strength at the net.
Defensively, Shampine leads the team in digs (161), and the Royals average over 2.0 blocks per set as a team. Queens also ranks among the conference's top servers with 142 aces on the year, led by Strawbridge (34) and Pilch (23).
SCOUTING THE RAMBLERS (22-3, 13-3 MIVA)
Loyola Chicago enters the postseason as the No. 1 seed and one of the most complete teams in the country. The Ramblers are dominant on both sides of the ball, hitting .364 as a team and holding opponents to just a .223 clip.
Parker Van Buren headlines the offense with 373 kills (4.34 kills per set) on .410 hitting, while Daniel Fabikovic (3.37 kills per set) and Jake Read (1.78 kills per set) provide additional firepower. Setter Ryan McElligott ranks near the top nationally with 10.83 assists per set, helping fuel a balanced and efficient attack.
Loyola also boasts a strong defensive front, averaging 2.55 blocks per set behind standout middle blockers Nicodemus Meyer (115.0 total blocks) and Brad Bell (0.85 blocks per set). The Ramblers are 14-1 at home this season and have dropped just one match inside Gentile Arena.
PRE-MATCH COMMENTS FROM HEAD COACH JEREMY PRICE
"I think certainly playing in the tournament last year is going to help us, especially from a preparation standpoint," Head Coach Jeremy Price said. "In the MIVA, all of our regular season series are two-match series, so the postseason is a bit of a different mindset. You only get one shot at a team, and in this case, it's a team that's still pretty fresh in our minds since we just played them two weeks ago."
"We realize it's a pretty substantial challenge. Loyola's been in the top ten all year. They're an elite team, and we're hoping we can use the experience of being in this situation last year to help us this time around. I think it's important to qualify for tournaments like this because every year we do, it's another year of experience we can build on."
When speaking on key players going into the weekend's matchup, Price noted senior veteran Matthew Pilch and younger players such as sophomore Chance Shampine and redshirt freshman Carson Strawbridge.
"We're excited that it looks like Chance [Shampine] is going to be back. We didn't have him for the two matches at Loyola, so getting him back certainly helps. Hopefully, we'll have our full starting lineup—about as healthy as you can be this time of year.
We need Chance to play well, and I thought both Matthew Pilch and Carson Strawbridge were excellent last weekend. They'll need to keep playing at that high level, especially Matthew, as our only senior starter. I know he's excited for the opportunity. When you go into a tournament knowing every match could be your last, that brings a different level of motivation and excitement."
SOCIAL MEDIA
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