Unusual season opener leads to Pride 3-1 loss to Morningside

DUBUQUE, Iowa - A day that was supposed to see the Clarke University men's volleyball team play a pair of matches on the Kehl Center's main floor ended with a single match being played on the back court in CU's 3-1 loss to Morningside University.

The Pride were slated to open their 2023 with a match against Cardinal Stritch but after the first set in which the Pride won 25-17, a slick section of the floor created by condensation from the Kehl Center roof due to snow accumulation made conditions unfit to continue so the match was deemed a no contest.

Cardinal Stritch and Morningside would then play their regularly scheduled match on the back court in the Kehl Center before the Pride and Mustangs would then finish the night on that same floor for a MU victory by set scores of 25-22, 14-25, 25-22, and 25-16.

Morningside held significant advantages in kills and service aces combining for 52 as the Pride finished with just 37 combined kills and aces. Leading the way for the Mustangs was the pair of Natan Alves and Kahakai Kahoiwai as they both finished with 12 kills, combining for 24 of the team's 39 kills with Alves hitting for a .231 percentage.

For the Pride, the middles were strong offensively with Zachary Barr and Stephen Lewandowski as Lewandowski finished with the team-high eight kills and a .538 hitting percentage with Barr hitting .400 with five kills while adding four total blocks in three assists and a solo. Both Justin Hernandez and Curtney Germaine finished with six kills as Hernandez was efficient with his lefty swing from the right side going 5-for-10 with only two errors for a .300 percentage from the outside.

Clarke men's volleyball will be back at it on Saturday morning with two more matches on the docket, starting with an 11:00 a.m. CT first serve against Augustana College followed by a 5:00 p.m. CT scheduled start against Roosevelt University.