Grand Rapids, Mich. – Aquinas was back at it for early morning volleyball today (Feb. 3) as the Saints defended their home court against the Trinity Christian Trolls. Trinity Christian has gotten the best of Aquinas over the last two seasons, beating Aquinas in both matchups. That trend continued on today as the Trolls had AQ's number one more time.

TCC rallied back in the second set to shift the momentum of the match for a 3-1 victory. AQ moves to 2-2 on the year while the Trolls pick up their first win of 2024.

Trinity Christian 3, Aquinas 1 (13-25, 25-18, 25-11, 25-20)

The first set started close with the teams tied at six even. A massive seven-point run that featured kills from Connor Staats, Ernesto Lopez, and Noah Smith-Slosar turned the tides of the set. The Saints ran away with the set and won the set 25-13 after a Staats kill from Callahan Schwartz. AQ hit .450 in the set as Staats racked up five kills.

Aquinas looked to be cruising towards another win in the second set, but a 9-1 run from the Trolls in the middle of the set completely turned the tides of the match. Trinity Christian rallied from a 14-11 deficit to win the set 25-18, outscoring Aquinas 14-4 to close out the set.

That momentum continued into the third set as Trinity had Aquinas on its heels with an 11-point run early in the set. AQ was unable to maintain a foothold in the set as TCC improved to 2-1 in the match with a 25-11 third-set win.

A late rally from AQ tied the set up in the deciding fourth set to even the score at 17. Trinity responded with a three-point run and then kills from Staats and Lopez had AQ trailing by just one. However, another run from the visitors all but sealed the deal for the Trolls' first win of the year.

By the Numbers

Despite the outcome, the box score was close between the two teams. Trinity led in hitting percentage (.184-.108), aces (9-4), and blocks (12-7). AQ led in assists (35-32) and digs (36-32). Both teams ended the match with 38 kills.

Staats had another strong performance, posting 16 kills on 33 swings for a .303 hitting percentage. He paired his kills with two aces, a solo block, two block assists, and five digs for another busy match.

Smith-Slosar had another solid match on the front line, recording five kills and four block assists.

Up Next

Aquinas will be looking to rebound on Tuesday (Feb. 6) for its fourth match in six days. The Saints are scheduled for a rematch against Calvin on the road at 7:30 p.m.