BELMONT, N.C. – The Barton men's volleyball team (8-5, 3-1) fell for the first time in Conference Carolinas play with a 3-0 loss to Belmont Abbey (5-5, 3-1) Saturday afternoon at the Wheeler Center.
The Crusaders won over the Bulldogs by scores of 25-13, 25-16 and 27-25 and moved into a second-place tie with the Bulldogs in the current league standings.
Belmont Abbey was led by Zach Puentes (Wellington, Fla.) with a double-double – 12 kills and 11 digs – while Joseph Morris (Bethesda, Md.) added 37 assists in the win.
The Crusaders hit .330 for the contest and scored the final three points of the third set to sweep the Bulldogs. Belmont Abbey also limited Barton to a 0.075 hitting percentage and won despite 12 service errors in the contest.
Barton was led by freshman outside hitter
Lawson Hink (Brookfield, Wis.) with 11 kills and senior setter
Seth Deppe (Mukwonago, Wis.) with 23 assists in the setback. The Bulldogs were also hurt by service errors, totaling 13 in the match.
Barton next travels to Long Beach, Calif., to take on top-ranked Long Beach State on Saturday, February 22, at 10:30 p.m., Eastern Standard Time while Belmont Abbey takes on Erskine in a league match Tuesday at 7:00 p.m., in Due West, S.C.
