ADRIAN, Mich. – The Maple Leafs men's volleyball team beat Division III school, Adrian, in three sets on Tuesday night. The first set was a nerve-racking 34-32 win, the second set was a blowout 25-11 win, and the third set was the most reasonable, with a 25-20 score.
 
The Bulldogs had six set points in the first set but couldn't capitalize. They led 24-23, 25-24, 29-28, 30-29, 31-30, and 32-31. Goshen also had a few set points, leading 26-25, 27-26, and 28-27. In the end, Goshen won the final three points of the set with two kills by Alexander Rabadzhiev from Michael Wahl.
 
"The first set felt like we were playing catch up," said head coach Lauren Ford. "We were still trying to find our rhythm."
 
The Maple Leafs found that rhythm in the second half of the second set. Goshen led 11-8 early, but they scored 14 of the following 17 points to win the set 25-11. The teams were tied at 15 in the third set, but Goshen went on a 10-5 run to win 25-20.
 
"The guys played their game in the second set and focused on our side," Ford added. "They know that when we keep our side clean and quick, we're unstoppable."
 
Christian Rodriguez displayed ten kills, nine digs, and a season-high three blocks. Rabadzhiev added 14 kills. Wahl led the offense with 40 assists. Lucas Sauder put down ten kills and six digs, hitting .400. Andy Bennett had five blocks, and Ian Fox had four.
 
Adrian had six aces, while Goshen didn't have any. However, the Leafs led in the kills, assists, digs, and blocks categories. Goshen was previously 0-2 against Adrian. This season, the Bulldogs are now 0-7 against teams from the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference.
 
That was the final non-conference game for the Maple Leafs (17-7, 4-5 WHAC) in the regular season. Next up is a match at Lawrence Tech on Tuesday, March 15, at 7:00 pm. Then, they face the Blue Devils in Goshen on the very next day at 7:00 pm. We encourage you to order tickets ahead of time for that game here.