BLOOMINGTON, Ill. - Already surpassing the program record for wins in a season, the Illinois Wesleyan University men's volleyball team will begin a tough slate of College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin matches with a midweek matchup against No. 10 North Central College Wednesday, March 1. First serve is scheduled for 7 p.m. inside Shirk Center. 

The Titans (9-6) enter the match off a sweep over Rockford University Friday night, Feb. 24 that propelled them to their ninth win in 15 matches, the most in a season for the three-year-old program. IWU saw one of its best offensive performances in the win, as the team finished with a .304 attack percentage. Junior Michael Eastman (Chicago, Ill.-Saint Ignatius) led the match with 12 kills, while freshman Jace Milka (Bolingbrook, Ill.-Plainfield East) finished with nine kills on a .538 clip. 

Eastman has led the Green and White offense for the third consecutive year, as he has 160 kills through 50 sets played, good for an average of 3.20 kills per set, and has recorded 24 service aces. Sophomore Vince DiCosola (Aurora, Ill.-Oswego East) and junior Bradley Benson (Lemont, Ill.-Lemont Township) have been the masterminds behind the majority of the offense with 247 and 186 assists, respectively. 

The IWU defense has been led by sophomore Jake Kougan (Frankfort, Ill.-Lincoln-Way East) and junior Julian Perez (Orland Park, Ill.-Carl Sandburg) with 33 and 29 blocks, respectively, on the season. DiCosola leads the team with 84 digs, followed by Eastman with 52. 

North Central (10-3) most recently played at Augustana College Saturday, Feb. 25. The Cardinals opened the CCIW portion of their schedule with a sweep over the Vikings.


The match will be live streamed, which can be accessed here, and to follow along with the live stats, click here. To stay up-to-date on all things regarding IWU men's volleyball, be sure to follow @iwumensvolleyball on Instagram and @iwumvb on Twitter.