Kougan, Williams, and Perez prepare for a ball to be served while waiting at the net

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Men’s Volleyball Head to No. 4 Loras for CCIW Contest

First serve is scheduled for 7 p.m. inside Lillis Athletic & Wellness Center

3/19/2024 4:00:00 PM

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. - Continuing its grueling stretch of College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin matches, a conference that has three members ranked within the top-15 nationally, the Illinois Wesleyan University men's volleyball team heads to No. 4 Loras College for a CCIW contest Wednesday, March 20. Action is set to begin at 7 p.m. inside Lillis Athletic & Wellness Center, the host site of the 2024 NCAA Division III Men's Volleyball National Championship.

The Titans (10-10, 1-4 CCIW) enter the match off a three-set loss to 11th-ranked North Central College Saturday, March 16. Senior Michael Eastman (Chicago, Ill.-Saint Ignatius) led the Green and White with 11 kills on a .400 attack percentage, along with a team-high five digs. Junior Vince DiCosola (Aurora, Ill.-Oswego East) posted 18 assists, while junior Jake Kougan (Frankfort, Ill.-Lincoln-Way East) led IWU with four blocks.

Eastman has been the staple in the Titan offense, as he leads Illinois Wesleyan with 200 kills, averaging 3.23 per set, on a .270 clip. Freshman Bryce Williams (Chicago, Ill.-Whitney M. Young) is second on the squad with 141 kills, while Kougan is third with 99. Eastman's 22 aces are a team-high, followed by Kougan with 15, and senior Bradley Benson (Lemont, Ill.-Lemont Township) is third with 13.

DiCosola and freshman Brenden Reutter (Frankfort, Ill.-Lincoln-Way East) have orchestrated the majority of the Titan offense this season. DiCosola is first with 309 assists, averaging 5.07 per set, while Reutter has 249, an average of 4.53 per set.

On the defensive side, sophomore Jace Milka (Bolingbrook, Ill.-Plainfield East) leads the Titans in digs with 172. Eastman is second with 105, and DiCosola and Willaims are tied for third with 77. Kougan leads the net presence for IWU, having recorded 43 blocks this season. Seniors Javier Romano (Prospect Heights, Ill.-Wheeling) and Julian Perez (Orland Park, Ill.-Carl Sandburg) are second and third with 40 and 30 blocks, respectively.

IWU and Loras (18-0, 5-0 CCIW) will face off for the eighth time, and the second time this season. Loras holds the upperhand in all previous meetings, and took the most recent in three sets Wednesday, Feb. 28. The Duhawks enter the contest off a sweep over Augustana College Wednesday, March 13.

Loras will be providing a live steam of the match, which can be found here, and live stats can be found by clicking here.

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