CHICAGO - In its last game of the 2024 season, the Illinois Wesleyan University men's volleyball team defeated College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin foe North Park University in four sets Saturday, April 6, winning with set scores 25-23, 25-18, 21-25, and 25-20. IWU closes out the season with an overall record of 11-14 (2-8 CCIW), matching the program's win record for a season that was set last year. 

Leading the Titan offense, senior Michael Eastman (Chicago, Ill.-Saint Ignatius) and freshman Bryce Williams (Chicago, Ill.-Whitney M. Young) finished with 14 and 12 kills, respectively. Junior Luke Hartke (Barrington, Ill.-Barrington) added nine, while senior Alec Mucha (Geneva, Ill.-Geneva) posted seven on a .500 attack percentage. 

Junior Vince DiCosola (Aurora, Ill.-Oswego East) and senior Bradley Benson (Lemont, Ill.-Lemont Township) orchestrated the majority of the offense. DiCosola finished with 23 assists, while Benson dished out 19 and finished with two of the team's four aces. 

Sophomore Jace Milka (Bolingbrook, Ill.-Plainfield East) finished one shy of his career-high, as he led the Green and White with 19 digs. Williams added 10 to shatter his career-best and notch his first collegiate double-double performance, and Eastman accumulated eight. Showing a strong net presence, senior Javier Romano (Prospect Heights, Ill.-Wheeling) tied his career-high six blocks to lead IWU. Mucha finished with five rejections, while Hartke finished with four. 

Facing a 20-19 deficit in the first set, Illinois Wesleyan rattled off five straight points to win the set. Williams kickstarted the run with a kill, which was followed by three Vikings miscues in four points, as Romano added a solo stuff in the run. 

Up 24-20, NPU battled back to bring the set to within one, forcing head coach Brandon Mueller to call a timeout. The break in the action worked in favor of the Titans, as DiCosola found Williams for a kill to close the set, 25-23. 

Similar to the first, the second set remained close, as both teams were tied at 13. Once again, Williams ignited a run with a kill, this time seeing the Green and White take seven of the next eight points to jump out to a 20-14 advantage. 

Off the run, Illinois Wesleyan cruised to a second set victory, with Eastman closing out the set on a kill, 25-18. 

After dropping the third set, 25-21, IWU rebounded in the fourth, as Mucha and Eastman paired up for a block to open the set.

Trailing 5-3, the Titans put together another impressive run, this time rattling off 11 of the next 12 points. A Vikings error began the run that saw Hartke register two kills, along with kills from Romano and Eastman, and three blocks for the Green and White to see the visitors take a 14-6 advantage. 

With the Vikings trying to mount a comeback, bringing the score to 18-15, Illinois Wesleyan took the next four points to close the door, ultimately taking the set 25-20. 

With the conclusion of the season, IWU sees its first senior class of Benson, Eastman, Mucha, Romano, Blake McGlashan-Bryant (Hawthorne, Calif.-Mira Costa), KJ Johnson (Saint John, Ind.-Marian Catholic), Adam Blackmore (Geneva, Ill.-Geneva), Michael Anderson (Plainfield, Ill.-Plainfield Central), and Julian Perez (Orland Park, Ill.-Carl Sandburg) finish their careers for the Green and White.

Mueller is set to return 12 members of the 2024 squad next season.