Grand Rapids, Mich. – The (RV) Aquinas men's volleyball squad was back in action inside the Sturrus Center this afternoon (Mar. 11) to take on the No. 13-ranked Indiana Tech Warriors. AQ was looking to bounce back today after falling to No. 9-ranked Lourdes the night before. The Saints got off to a hot start after winning the first set 25-22. However, the Warriors managed to shift the momentum in the second set and maintain that momentum throughout the next three sets. Indiana Tech managed to win the match after winning sets two through four by scores of 25-20, 25-23, and 25-15.

Aquinas moved to 10-10 on the season with a 9-6 conference record. Indiana Tech has now won nine of its last ten matches to improve to 13-7 on the season with a 12-1 WHAC record.

The first set got off to a competitive start with the two sides splitting the first ten points with Julian Armendano picking up two early kills. Joshua Boothroyd put the Saints out in front on the ensuing point to start a 3-0 lead, giving AQ an 8-5 advantage.

Indiana Tech responded with a 3-0 run of its own to tie the set at eight, but AQ came back with a four-point run to reestablish the lead. Armendano and Leo-Paul Rousseau both picked up kills during the run while Boothroyd and Chase Gil each had a block.

In a set of runs, Indiana Tech, once again, matched Aquinas' run with a four-point run of its own. An error from the Warriors, an ace from Rousseau, and another block from Boothroyd and Gil gave Aquinas another 3-0 run to go ahead 15-12.

The Warriors slowly began to reduce the deficit, but AQ went on another 4-0 run to take a late 22-17 lead. IT came back with yet another three-point run to keep the score close but kills from Boothroyd and Armendano gave AQ a big first-set victory by a score of 25-22.

Aquinas rolled the positive momentum from the first set into the start of the second set as the home side took a quick 5-2 lead. However, Indiana Tech went on a 5-0 run to take its first lead of the set. That five-point run appeared to be the turning point of the second set.

The two teams went on to trade points until the set was tied at 13. A few errors from Aquinas on the subsequent three points put Indiana Tech out in front and forced Michael Crane to use his first timeout of the set.

Coming out of the timeout, AQ wasn't quite able to establish consistent momentum. The Warriors maintained a consistent lead throughout the remainder of the second set and they went on to win 25-20.

Kills from Boothroyd and errors from the Warriors helped the Saints get out to a slim 10-9 lead at the start of the third set. Two points later, Aquinas started a 3-0 run featuring a huge Gil kill, a block from Carter Sabo and Gil, and an ace from Rousseau. The Warriors took two points back, but Sabo and Armendano responded with two kills to maintain a 15-12 advantage.

A couple of errors from Aquinas and a kill from Daynte Stewart helped the Warriors get back into the set and tie the score at 15. Several points later, the Warriors strung together another three-point run to take a late 19-17 advantage.

IT continued to hold its small lead with a pair of kills to put itself ahead 23-20. Boothroyd and Armendano both slammed down a kill on the ensuing two points to reduce the Warriors' lead to just one. However, an error from AQ on the next point gave Indiana Tech a set-point opportunity. A Gil kill reduced the deficit to just one, but another kill from Stewart ended the third set in favor of the visitors.

Indiana Tech continued to hold its momentum heading into the fourth set. The Warriors claimed nine of the first 11 points of the set to take a massive 9-2 lead. Boothroyd picked up four kills throughout the set, but Aquinas couldn't quite manage to dig itself out of that early hole.

The Warriors went on to win the fourth set 25-15 and win the match 3-1.

Statistically, the two teams were evenly matched. Aquinas led in assists (41-36), while Indiana Tech held a slim advantage in kills (42-41), hitting percentage (.214-.139), blocks (11-10), and digs (35-28). Both teams ended the match with six aces.

Boothroyd ended the match win a team-leading 14 kills (.269) on 26 swings. He also had one assist, seven digs, one solo block, and three block assists.

Armendano finished the afternoon with 11 kills, one assist, a team-leading three aces, five digs, one solo block, and one block assist.

Gil continued to play well today, posting nine kills (.333) and a team-high seven block assists.

Aquinas' toughest stretch of matches this season continues this week. The Saints are taking a spring break trip to California to take on No. 6-ranked Menlo and No. 5-ranked The Master's. Those matches are scheduled for Thursday (Mar. 16) and Friday (Mar. 17).