Box Score by Cory Guinn
MOUNT OLIVE, N.C. – The Barton College men's volleyball team suffered just its third Conference Carolinas defeat with a 3-1 (25-21, 25-22, 15-25, 26-24) loss to rival University of Mount Olive on Tuesday night in Kornegay Arena.
Barton (18-5, 12-3) struggled out of the gate, hitting just .192 in the first set as Mount Olive (11-10, 10-6) went ahead early with a 25-21 victory.
The Trojans moved their lead to a two-set advantage with a 25-22 win in the second set before the Bulldogs responded with a 25-15 victory in the third set. BC hit .474 in the frame and held Mount Olive to a .130 hitting mark.
Both sides played a back-and-forth affair in the fourth set but UMO was able to steal the win on its home floor with a 26-24 victory.
Senior Pierre Tang-Taye led all players with 18 kills to go along with a .455 hitting percentage, while freshman Aleksa Brkovic finished with 12 kills and two service aces. Fellow freshman Vasilis Mandilaris was also in double figures with 11 kills as junior Federico Pagliara turned in his fifth double-double performance with 43 assists and 10 digs.
Barton will travels to Bristol, Tenn. for a league match with King University on Friday, April 8, before facing Lees-McRae College on Saturday, April 9 in Banner Elk, N.C.
