Jace Milka running out during starting lineups

Audrey Peterson

Men’s Volleyball Hosts Carthage for Top-20 Battle, CCIW Regular Season Title

Titans to celebrate senior day, look for first conference crown

4/3/2026 1:00:00 PM

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. - A College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin Regular Season Championship is up for grabs Saturday, April 4, as the 17th-ranked Illinois Wesleyan University men's volleyball team hosts No. 4 Carthage College Saturday, April 4. With both teams tied atop the league with 8-1 CCIW record the top seed in the conference tournament as well as the conference regular season championship. First serve is scheduled for 3 p.m. inside Shirk Center.

The Titans will honor their lone senior, Jace Milka (Bolingbrook, Ill.-Plainfield East) prior to the match. A team captain this season, Milka has been a big part of the program over the last four years, including becoming the program's career digs record holder, entering Saturday with 549, along with many other top-10 marks.

IWU swept North Park University Wednesday night, April 1, bringing its record to 21-4 overall entering the weekend. Junior Bryce Williams (Chicago, Ill.-Whitney M. Young) led the offense with seven kills on a .500 clip. Fellow junior Brenden Reutter (Frankfort, Ill.-Lincoln-Way East), the reigning CCIW Setter of the Week, notched a team-best 20 assists, helping guide the Green and White to a .448 hitting percentage. Sophomores Ben Zima (Glen Ellyn, Ill.-Glenbard South) and Wilson Spaulding (Tucson, Ariz.-Catalina Foothills) led the defense. Zima tallied a team-high nine digs, while Spaulding finished with three blocks, as the two helped limit the Vikings to a sub-zero showing. Sophomore Ethan Kuziela (Chicago, Ill.-Marist), the defending CCIW Hitter of the Week, tacked on a team-best two aces.

The Titan offense is one of the most dominant units nationally, ranking first in Division III in kills per set with an average of 13.50. Leading the way is Kuziela with 299 kills, averaging 3.22 per set on an efficient .351 clip. Freshman Aydin Provost (Chicago, Ill.-Mount Carmel) closely follows with 286 kills, an average of 3.25 per set, doing so on a .294 showing. Williams rounds out the top three with 219 kills, as the junior is averaging 2.67 per set on a .240 clip. Kuziela also holds the team-lead in aces with 25, closely followed by Milka's 24, and Williams is third with 20.

One of the best setter rooms in the country, IWU is second nationally in assists per set, averaging 12.40. The setter duo of Kuziela and Reutter are also guiding the Green and White to the 20th-best hitting percentage, sitting at a .274 clip for the season. Kuziela leads the team with 587 assists, an average of 6.31 per set. Reutter follows with 411 assists, averaging 5.01 helpers per set.

Defensively, Zima sits atop the squad with 262 digs, as his average of 2.82 per set ranks 18th nationally. Kuziela follows with 164 digs, an average of 1.76 per set, while Williams' 133 seeds him third. The Green and White net defense has been powered by sophomore Gavin Rohlwing (Tower Lake, Ill.-Barrington) with 65 blocks. Rohlwing enters the match averaging 0.84 per set. Kuziela follows with 62 rejections, while Provost's 50 stuffs puts him third. Together, this group has led a Titan defense that is limiting opponents to a .182 attack percentage.

Illinois Wesleyan will meet the Firebirds on the court for the 12th time, with Carthage taking all previous meetings. The Titans have put up a fight in the last two contests, though, including a four-set battle earlier this season, Feb. 19. Kuziela led the offense with 11 kills, while tying for the team-lead alongside Reutter with 20 assists. Zima totaled a team-high seven digs, and Rohlwing led the net defense with three blocks. CC comes to town off a sweep at North Central College Wednesday night, April 1, upping its record to 19-3.

A live stream of the match can be found here, while live stats can be tracked by clicking here.

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