FOND DU LAC, Wis. - Marian University men's volleyball (7-11, 4-7 MCVL) had a season-high .282 hitting percentage as the Sabres defeated Olivet with set scores of 25-10, 25-15, 22-25 and 25-22.

The Sabres jumped out early and never looked back as they hit .556 in the opening set with 13 kills to only three errors.  Marian would score 13 of the first 18 points as they were able to cruise past the Comets 25-10.  Sophomore Jon Smallpage led the way in the set with four kills on five attacks.

The second set proved to be a carbon copy of the first as the Sabres continued to churn out kills hitting .364 with 12 kills to only four errors.  After taking a 16-11 lead, Marian was able to go on an 8-1 run and close out the set at 25-15 shortly after.  Once again Smallpage had a big set with six kills on eight attacks, while fellow sophomore Ben Walter served up three aces.

Olivet fought back in the third set with their best offensive performance of the night starting the set with a 9-4 lead.  The Comets were able to bring their lead out to 24-16 needing just one point to force a fourth set.  The Sabres battled back, however, with sophomore Joey Dittman at the service line to spark a quick 6-0 run.  This would be as close as Marian would get, though, as an attacking error forced another set.

The Comets once again jumped out to a fast start leading 8-2 to open the set.  Marian bounced back quickly and would score the next seven points to take a 9-8 lead.  The two teams battled back-and-forth until Marian used a quick 4-0 run after leading 15-14 to give the Sabres enough breathing room to cruise to the finish.

Smallpage led the way with a match-high 18 kills with Walter chipping in 12 kills and recording a .588 hitting percentage.  Freshman Jacob DeGroot had another big game at the net with a solo block and five assisted blocks.

Marian closes out the weekend tomorrow, Saturday, March 11, with a 12:30 p.m. first serve against Loras from Sadoff Gym.

--FightBlueFight--