Carthage Falls in Five-Set NCAA Division III Semifinal Thriller

They lost to No. 1-seed Springfield in a five-set thriller. Carthage will play Baruch today for third place. Good luck and congrats on a great season (highlights below are from a press release picked up verbatim).

• 2011 Molten Championship The Carthage College men’s volleyball team (22-11, 8-0 Midwest-III Volleyball Conference), tied for fourth place in the April 12 American Volleyball Coaches Association NCAA Division III poll, opened play in the Molten Championship on Friday, April 15 with a 3-2 loss to No. 1 Nazareth College (30-3) in a semifinal match at Nazareth’s Robert A. Kidera Gym in Rochester, N.Y. The second-seeded Golden Flyers’ winning set scores over the third-seeded Red Men’s were 25-14, 18-25, 27-29, 28-26 and 15-11. Top-seeded Springfield, tied with Nazareth for first place in AVCA national poll, defeated fourth-seeded and No. 6 Baruch College, 3-1, in the other semifinal contest with winning scores of 25-20, 25-20, 22-25 and 25-17. Carthage plays Baruch in the Saturday, April 16 consolation match at 5 p.m., EDT, with defending-champion Springfield taking on Nazareth for the title at 8 p.m., EDT. This is Carthage’s fourth appearance in the Molten Championship. Both the 2005 and 2007 Red Men teams finished second in the event, and the 2010 squad finished third at Tarble Arena in Kenosha, Wis. The Molten Championship will come to an end after this year’s event, as the NCAA will launch a Division III Men’s Volleyball Championship in 2012.
• Randy Hansen and Connor Wexter Named AVCA All-America Carthage outside hitter Randy Hansen (Jr., Oak Lawn, Ill.) and setter Connor Wexter (Fr., New Lenox, Ill./Lincoln-Way Central) were named American Volleyball Coaches Association second-team All-America. Hansen is ranked 22nd in NCAA Division III attack percentage (.300 thru April 10) and 25th in kills (3.35 per set) with a 0.71 blocks-per-set average. Wexter, who was also named AVCA NCAA Division III “Newcomer of the Year,” is second nationally in assists (10.98 per set) and carries a .390 attack percentage.
• 2011 M-III Conference Tournament Carthage won the Midwest-III Volleyball Conference Tournament on Saturday, April 2 with a 3-0 win over Thiel College (10-20) in the championship match at Thiel’s Beeghly Gymnasium in Greenville, Pa. The Red Men’s winning set scores over the Tomcats were 25-19, 25-20 and 25-21. Earlier on Saturday, Carthage swept Fontbonne University (8-15), 3-0, in a semifinal match with winning scores of 25-12, 25-16 and 25-20. The tournament got underway on Friday, April 1 with third-seeded Thiel College (10-19) upsetting second-seeded the Milwaukee School of Engineering (11-17), 3-1, with winning set scores of 26-28, 25-17, 25-20 and 26-24. Fourth-seeded Fontbonne University (8-14) swept fifth-seeded the College of Mount St. Joseph (1-16), 3-0, with winning scores of 25-16, 25-20 and 25-23 in the other first-round contest.
• M-III All-Conference Picks Six Carthage players were named to the 2011 All-Midwest-III Volleyball Conference Team, including four first-team members. Outside hitter Randy Hansen (Jr., Oak Lawn, Ill., .300 attack percentage, 3.35 kills per set1.75 digs per set, 0.71 blocks per set) was named first-team all-conference and the league’s “most valuable player.” Middle blocker Tyler Frings (Jr., Hubertus, Wis./Milwaukee-Pius XI, .329, 1.64 kills per set, 1.33 blocks per set), middle blocker Tom O’Connell (Sr., Chicago, Ill./Brother Rice, .269, 3.10 kills per set, 1.33 digs per, 0.60 blocks per set) and middle blocker Matt Yanz (Jr., Bolingbrook, Ill./Naperville-Central, .531, 2.11 kills per set, 0.92 blocks per set) were also named first-team all-conference. Setter Connor Wexter (Fr., New Lenox, Ill./Lincoln-Way Central, .390, 10.98 assists per set, 1.18 digs per set) was named second-team all-conference and “freshman of the year,” while outside hitter/libero Mike Bynon (Jr., Burnt Hills, N.Y./Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake, 2.45 digs per set) was named second-team all-conference.