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Brenden Reutter setting at IWU Tri I Jan. 24, 2026
ASHTIN ELDER PHOTO
2
Ill. Wesleyan IWU 8-3,0-0 CCIW
3
Winner Dominican (IL) DU 5-1,1-0 NACC
Ill. Wesleyan IWU
8-3,0-0 CCIW
2
Final
3
Dominican (IL) DU
5-1,1-0 NACC
Winner
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 4 5 F
Ill. Wesleyan IWU 21 21 25 25 12 (2)
Dominican (IL) DU 25 25 23 22 15 (3)

Game Recap: Men's Volleyball |

Comeback Falls Short as Men’s Volleyball Drops Match at Dominican

Titans win streak snapped at four

RIVER FOREST, Ill. - The Illinois Wesleyan University men's volleyball team's comeback at Dominican University came up short in a five-set battle Thursday night, Feb. 5. After dropping the first two sets, IWU came back to force a fifth, but could not pull off the reverse sweep (25-21, 25-21, 23-25, 22-25, 15-12). The loss snaps the Titans four-match win streak, as they drop to 8-3 on the year, while Dominican improves to 5-1. 

Junior Bryce Williams (Chicago, Ill.-Whitney M. Young) led the Green and White offense with 16 kills on a .357 clip. Freshman Aydin Provost (Chicago, Ill.-Mount Carmel) added 11 kills, while sophomore Ethan Kuziela (Chicago, Ill.-Marist) finished with nine. Kuziela posted a team-best three aces, followed by two from junior Ethan Keutzer (St. Louis, Mo.-St. Louis University High). 

Helping facilitate an IWU offense that hit .252 on the night, Kuziela recorded a team-high 24 assists, while junior Brenden Reutter (Frankfort, Ill.-Lincoln-Way East) tallied 16. Sophomore Gavin Rohlwing (Tower Lake, Ill.-Barrington) led the defense with four blocks. Kuziela closely trailed, as he totaled three rejections. Sophomore Ben Zima's (Glen Ellyn, Ill.-Glenbard South) 11 digs were the most by a Titan in the match.

After starting slow in the first two sets, the Green and White found its spark in the third. Trailing 9-7, Illinois Wesleyan was gifted a slim lead behind three straight DU miscues. Following a sideout, Reutter found Williams for a kill to make it 11-10. Kuziela aced the Stars, and Provost downed a dish to make it 13-10, calling for a timeout from the home team.

The Stars fought back to take a 19-18 lead, but a service error equalized the score at 19. Rohlwing put the visitors back out in front, and another Dominican error made it a two point lead for the Titans, 21-19. The gap was enough for the Titans to maintain, as Provost and Kuziela teamed up for a block to secure set three, 25-23. 

Momentum stayed in favor of Illinois Wesleyan, as Williams followed two straight DU errors with a kill to make it 3-0 early in the fourth.

The Green and White never trailed in the set, as Kuziela found Milka for a kill to stave off a Stars comeback, making it 23-21. Rohlwing downed a dish from Kuziela to cue set point, and a Dominican error forced the decisive set five, as IWU erased a two-set deficit with a score of 25-22.

Facing a 12-6 deficit in the fifth, freshman Dylan Quinn (Downers Grove, Ill.-Downers Grove North) buried a pass from Reutter for a kill to ignite a late push. Kuziela aced the Stars for the third time in the match, and Quinn followed with a solo stuff to cut the gap in half, 12-9. Fending off match point, Provost roped a kill off a set from Kuziela, and Rohlwing and Milka teamed up for a block on the ensuing point to make it a two-point contest, 14-12. IWU was unable to sustain the comeback any longer, dropping the set, 15-12. 

The Titans return home to take on No. 19 Milwaukee School of Engineering Sunday afternoon, Feb. 8. Pre-Super Bowl festivities begin at 12 p.m. in the Shirk Center.
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