Graceland Wraps Up Day One of Heart of America Challenge

Graceland men's volleyball concluded the first day of the Heart of America Challenge on Friday, January 31, with matches against Brescia University and Governors State University. Despite competing in close sets, the Yellowjackets fell in straight sets in both contests.

Graceland moves to 0-4 overall (0-0 Heart of America Conference), while Brescia improves to 1-0 (0-0 River States Conference) and Governors State to 5-1 (0-0 Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference).

Head coach Eric Majors emphasized the team's growth in the early portion of the season.

"We faced some very solid competition today. Our focus this season is improvement, and we made some major strides. The first set against Brescia was really close, and quite honestly, we're not expecting these matches to be close at the beginning of the season. Instead, we're focusing on us—on improving and developing a long-term focus on success. We want to be playing the best volleyball possible by the end of the season."

Brescia 3, Graceland 0 (26-24, 25-18, 25-14)

Graceland opened the tournament against Brescia, keeping the first set close before falling behind late. The Bearcats were efficient offensively, hitting .295 as a team while holding Graceland to a .055 percentage.

Andrew Youssef led Graceland with eight kills, hitting .172, while Elijah Kline added seven kills and one ace. Andrew Cziep recorded five kills and two blocks, while setter Luis Garcia dished out 19 assists and collected seven digs. Davian George contributed three kills and two blocks.

Brescia's Tuna Konukcu led all players with 16 kills on a .625 hitting percentage, and Meric Akovali finished with 28 assists.

Graceland struggled to sustain offensive momentum, hitting -.034 in the second set and -.091 in the third. Service pressure from Brescia was also a factor, as the Yellowjackets allowed seven aces and committed nine service errors.

Governors State 3, Graceland 0 (25-23, 25-18, 25-16)

In their second match of the evening, Graceland again kept the opening set close before dropping the match in straight sets. Governors State recorded 37 kills on a .184 hitting percentage, while Graceland finished with 27 kills and a .019 efficiency.

Andrew Cziep led the Yellowjackets with 13 kills and 15 total points. Youssef added six kills and five digs, while Kline tallied six kills and eight total points. Garcia recorded 22 assists and five digs, while George contributed four total blocks.

Governors State's Diego Antunez led with 11 kills and 11 digs, and Lucas Lapa finished with 32 assists.

Graceland remained within two points late in the first set before an Antunez kill secured the frame for the Jaguars. The Yellowjackets allowed four aces and committed nine service errors.

Up next

Graceland returns for day two of the Heart of America Challenge on Saturday, February 1. The Yellowjackets will face St. Ambrose University at 12 p.m., followed by an exhibition match against Missouri Baptist University.

For more information on Graceland men's volleyball and Graceland athletics, visit GUjackets.com.