From Jimmie Athletics

DES MOINES, Iowa (jimmiepride.com)– The Jimmie men’s volleyball team lost its first pool play matchup at the 2023 NAIA National Championship on Wednesday. UJ was swept by No. 2 Vanguard (Calif.) 25-22, 25-21, 25-16.

Jamestown (21-4) will face No. 9 Grand View (Iowa) at 1 p.m. Wednesday to close out pool play.

The Jimmies started on a 5-0 run and eventually built a 13-7 lead after a combo block by Derek Correa and Tysen Myers. Vanguard went in front for the first time at 19-18, part of a 4-0 run that put Jamestown behind for the remainder of the set. A UJ attack error closed out the set for Vanguard.

Downey Huynh gave Jamestown a 9-8 lead in set two with a kill, but the lead was short-lived as Vanguard responded with the next three points and never gave up the lead. Oguizhan Oguz brought the Jimmies within 17-16, the closest they would get down the stretch.

Vanguard never trailed in set three, using a 10-4 run to open up an 18-11 lead that forced a Jamestown timeout. A kill from Caylor Cox ended the run and made it 18-12, but the Lions regrouped by taking five of the next seven points.

Jamestown hit .267 for the match, with Oguz leading the way with 14 kills and a .286 hitting percentage. Cox and Hunynh both finished with six kills. Correa passed out 29 assists and had five digs. Adam Lopata had a team-high six digs and Ever Cancel recorded five total blocks.