Match Stats
- Barton 3, Erskine 2 (23-25, 25-18, 25-21, 22-25, 15-11)
- Barton moves to 21-5; Erskine falls to 4-21
- Barton advances to the Conference Carolinas Semifinals to face Limestone
- Wilson, N.C.
- Attendance: 170
- Box Score
It took five sets for No. 1 seed Barton to advance past No. 8 seed Erskine into the Conference Carolinas semifinals. The Bulldogs won the match 23-25, 25-18, 25-21, 22-25, 15-11.
The match was even across the board statistically, but Barton hit at a .365 clip and held Erskine to a .277 effort. The teams registered eight aces apiece, the Fleet led 8-7 in blocks and 36-35 in digs.
Freshman right side Angelos Mandilaris posted a career-best 21 kills, while hitting .417 and adding three blocks, to lead Barton. Sophomore outside hitter Vasilus Mandilaris added 15 kills and seven digs, while sophomore outside Aleksa Brkovic managed 12 kills and three aces. Sophomore middle blocker Nick Leary added eight kills, while hitting at a team-best .533 clip and putting up four blocks. Senior defensive specialist Jonathan Navoa-Miralles pulled up a team-high nine digs.
Junior outside Daniel Fralix led Erskine with 16 kills, while freshman outside Isaac Lanier added 14. Freshman middle Absalon Williams chipped in 10 putaways and a team-best five blocks. Fralix also accounted for eight digs, three blocks and two aces. Junior libero Bryan Cardozo managed a team-best 12 digs. Senior setter Andres Talavera added 10 digs to his 50 assists and four aces to round out a double-double.
The decisive fifth set saw Barton lead 8-4 at the changeover thanks to kills by three different players and a trio of Erskine errors. Trailing 12-5, the Fleet charged back to within two at 13-11. Two Lanier kills and a kill and an ace by Fralix guided the rally. Brkovic ended the 6-1 Erskine run and the match with back to back putaways.
Erskine jumped out to a 4-1 lead in Set 1, but Barton countered with a 12-5 run, thanks to five Fleet errors and a trio of Brkovic kills. The Fleet turned the tables, scoring 10 of the next 13 points to turn a 13-9 deficit into a 19-16 lead of its own. Eight Bulldog miscues fueled the rally. A Lanier kill put Erskine on the hill at 24-20 and another Lanier putaway gave the Fleet the win on its fourth set-point chance.
Barton scored the first four points of Set 2 and held off several Erskine rallies as the lead swelled to six at 18-12 behind six Angelos Mandilaris kills. The Fleet would get no closer than five the rest of the way.
Back-to-back aces by Brkovic gave Barton a 17-11 lead in Set 3, which the Bulldogs led from wire to wire. A Vasilus Mandilaris kill put Barton up 24-20. Erskine staved off three set-point chances, with help from an ace and a kill by Lanier, but another Mandilaris putaway sealed the set.
Two kills and three blocks by Leary helped Barton to a 17-11 lead in Set 3. Erskine rallied with 11 of the next 13 points to pull ahead 22-19. Talavera managed two aces and two blocks in the comeback effort. A Fralix ace made it 24-21 and an Absalon kill extended the match.
PRESS RELEASES
Courtesy: Barton Athletics
WILSON, N.C. – The Barton men’s volleyball survived a scare in the opening round of the 2017 Conference Carolinas Men’s Volleyball Tournament with a 3-2 (23-25, 25-18, 25-21, 22-25, 15-11) win over defending league champion Erskine College on Tuesday night in Wilson Gymnasium.
The Bulldogs (21-5) entered the tournament as the No. 1 overall seed, earning the right to host the No. 8 seed Flying Fleet (4-21). After winning their opening match, the Bulldogs will now host both the semifinals and finals on Friday, April 21 and Saturday, April 22 in Wilson.
Both teams struggled to find their rhythm in the opening set of play as the scoreboard saw five total ties and five lead changes. The Bulldogs led by a score of 13-9 midway through the set, but an 8-2 run from the Fleet put them ahead by two points. Erskine held onto its lead, ending the set on a kill from freshman Isaac Lanier.
Barton responded with four unanswered points to open the second set of play, extending its lead to 18-12 late on a Nick Leary service ace. The BC lead continued to hold steady as an Erskine service error ended the set at tied the match at 1-all.
The third set of action played out much like the second with Barton gaining an early lead and never trailing. Erskine was able to put together a 5-1 run late in the frame but a kill from sophomore Vasilis Mandilaris ended the threat with BC in front.
A back-and-forth affair ensued in the fourth set of play, as neither side was able to gain an advantage of more than three points until four consecutive points put Barton ahead 15-9.
Erskine battled back to tie the score at 19-19, taking the lead on a Barton attack error and opening up its advantage to three points. The Bulldogs closed within one point late, but the Fleet scored three of the set’s final four points to tie the match and force a fifth and deciding set of play.
In the fifth set, Barton jumped out a 6-2 lead and extended the margin to a 12-5 count on an ace from V. Mandilaris. A 6-1 run from Erskine cut the BC lead to just two points, but back-to-back kills from sophomore Aleksa Brkovic ended the match and helped the Bulldogs advance into the postseason.
As a team, Barton hit .365 and forced the Fleet into 21 attack errors, but 20 service errors by the Bulldogs kept the match close.
Freshman Angelos Mandilaris had a career-high 21 kills and hit .417 in the match, while brother V. Mandilaris followed with 15 kills and a .440 hitting percentage to go with seven digs.
Brkovic chipped in 12 kills, four digs and three service aces, as senior setter Federico Pagliara totaled a season-high 54 assists and eight digs. Senior libero Jonathan Novoa-Miralles led the defense with nine digs.
Barton will now turn its focus to its next opponent in the semifinals, No. 4 seed Limestone College. The two teams split the regular season series with each winning on its home floor. The match is scheduled for Friday, April 21 in Wilson at 7:30 p.m.
Fans can follow all of the Conference Carolinas Men’s Volleyball Tournament action via the Tournament Central page here: http://bartonbulldogs.com/sports/mvball/2016-17/2017_MVB_Conference_Tournament/index
Courtesy: Erskine Athletics
Eighth seeded Erskine’s upset bid fell just short as #1 Barton held on to win 3-2 in the opening round of the Conference Carolinas Men’s Volleyball Championship Tuesday night.
Daniel Fralix led the Fleet with 16 kills, while Isaac Lanier added 14. Andres Talavera had a double-double, recording 50 assists and 10 digs as well as four aces. Bryan Cardozo had 12 digs and Absalon Williams added 10 kills.
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