Men’s Volleyball Defeats NAIA Carlow (Pa.)

Colby Whiteside (photo courtesy of Lincoln Earl '24)
Colby Whiteside (photo courtesy of Lincoln Earl '24)

BEREA, Ohio – The Baldwin Wallace University men's volleyball faced NAIA Carlow (Pa.) University in a non-conference match in the Ursprung Gymnasium inside the Lou Higgins Center. The Yellow Jackets (12-2) defeated the Celtics (0-3) in straight set by final scores of 25-13, 27-25, and 25-12.

BW was led by sophomore outside hitter Michael Devlin (Zelienople, Pa./Seneca Valley) as he tallied a match-high 15 kills and four digs. Sophomore setter Evan Herbst (Hamburg, N.Y.) dished out 36 assists, tying his career-high, and added six total blocks. Freshman middle hitter Colby Whiteside (Powell/Olentangy Liberty) posted a career-high seven total blocks and added eight kills (.500).

1st Set

  • BW jumped out to a 10-3 advantage in set one, causing Carlow to talk things over (10-3 BW)
  • The Yellow Jackets continued to stay in control of the set, hitting .478 as a team and totaling 15 kills, and extending their lead to 20-11
  • Sophomore right side hitter Carson Junker (Massillon/Jackson) closed set one (25-13) with an ace 

2nd Set

  • Carlow got out to a 12-6 lead after a few BW hitting errors, forcing the home team to a timeout
  • Back-to-back aces by Herbst brought the game within one before a kill by Devlin tied the game at 20-20
  • An advantage point by the Celtics at 24-23 forced BW to its second timeout
  • A block by Herbst and Whiteside earned the Yellow Jackets the 26-25 advantage, and an error by the Celtics ended set two (27-25 BW) 

3rd Set 

  • After being tied at 3-3 with the Celtics, BW went on a 8-0 run including three blocks by the Herbst and Whiteside duo, forcing Carlow to a timeout (11-3 BW)
  • BW extended the lead to 10 points (16-6) with a kill by Devlin on the left pin
  • The Yellow Jackets kept applying the pressure and went on to claim the set (25-12) and match (3-0)

The Yellow Jackets return to play on Saturday, February 18 when the team hosts a non-conference tri-match with Lancaster Bible College and Geneva (Pa.) College. BW will take on Lancaster Bible at 12:00 p.m. and Geneva at 4:00 p.m. in the Ursprung Gymnasium inside the Lou Higgins Center.