DI, DII men’s volleyball squads earn East Coast Championship bids, split with Hokies in ECVA Play Date finals

Saturday, February 10

Lynchburg, VA

9:00 AM

Liberty University Club Sports

ECVA South Play Date

Flames freshman outside hitter Anthony Bernardo elevates as he spikes off a block for a kill. (Photos by Aziz Ibrahim)

DI, DII men’s volleyball squads earn East Coast Championship bids, split with Hokies in ECVA Play Date finals

2/11/2024 10:47:00 AM | Men's Volleyball

Liberty advanced to the championship matches of the 9-team DI and 18-team DII brackets for Saturday's tournament at the LaHaye Multipurpose Center.

Gallery: (2-10-2024) Men's volleyball ECVA Play Date

Liberty University's Division I and Division II men's volleyball teams both clinched East Coast Championship bids by advancing to the finals of Saturday's ECVA South Play Date hosted by the Flames in the LaHaye Multipurpose Center.

Both squads fared well in their pools and won their semifinal matches before meeting rival Virginia Tech in the title matches of the 9-team DI and 18-team DII tournaments. There, the Flames experienced mixed results in the best-of-three finals with the Hokies' DI team and Flames' DII squad both prevailing in three games.

"We accomplished the goal we had set out for today, to both get that qualification to the East Coast Championships (April 6 at Penn State)," Liberty Head Coach Josh Knapp said.

The DI Flames opened pool play by defeating the University of Virginia, 25-19, 25-20, and UNC Greensboro, 28-26, 25-6, before losing to UNC Chapel Hill 25-18, 25-27, 15-10 to finish 2-1 in pool play. They then edged North Carolina State, 25-22, 25-23 in the semifinals to advance to the championship final against Virginia Tech.

Mason-Ellenberger-celebration — Flames senior libero Mason Ellenberger (1) celebrates with Tyler Wemple (left), Zach Lamoureux, and Josh Culpepper.

Despite a hard-fought comeback bid, the Flames fell to the Hokies for the second time this week, 25-21, 21-25, 15-13 after winning the first two games only to allow Virginia Tech to complete a reverse sweep in Monday night's best-of-five-game match at the Liberty Arena.

Blocks by sophomore setter Josh Culpepper at the right of the net and Liberty sophomore outside hitter Zach Lamoureux at the left put the Flames up 14-7 and 15-8 in Game 2 before Lamoureux and senior opposite hitter Tyler Wemple scored on dinks off of blockers at the right side to stretch the lead to 17-9 en route to the 25-21 triumph.

"We've been working on blocks this week and Culpepper was doing amazing," Lamoureux said. "He got his solo blocks in and we've been dialed in as a team. Tyler showed out with his serves," Lamoureux said. "He did phenomenal."

In the third and deciding game, Culpepper made an incredible block of a powerful spike at the right of the net that landed just inside the baseline before his jump serve did the same for an ace that tied the game at 11. An apparent stuff block by Lamoureux at the left side of the net was instead ruled a point for the Hokies, who took the lead for good. After blocks by freshmen middle hitter Beau Anderson and outside hitter Anthony Bernardo pulled the Flames back within one point, Virginia Tech clinched the championship with a 15-13 decision.

"Beau (Anderson) has been doing better as a replacement for (injured senior) Jared (Vazquez) with his blocking, and Anthony (Bernardo), for a freshman, he's taking on a huge part as the other main outside," Lamoureux said, noting that fatigue set in on the depleted squad. "We were exhausted and we were excited after we placed for ECVA. That was a big weight off our shoulders and we took it too much to heart and stepped off the gas for a little bit and let them come back. We had several chances there, we just made too many errors against Tech and they took advantage of that. They were just the better team at the end of the day today."

Lamoureux said the Flames and Hokies are the closest rivals in the state and can expect to see each other again in the ECVA South Play Date at JMU on March 23.

"It's been a battle," he said. "It's always a great team to fight against. We love playing each other and we talk through the net, but it's a rivalry. Neither one of us wants to give it to the other. We will fight to the end."

Knapp said a balance of physical athleticism and mental dexterity are keys to success in match play.

John Kinzler serves DII — Flames freshman John Kinzler serves in the final vs. Virginia Tech.

"The DI team is down three players right now so it's a slim roster of new people in and out," he said. "We're looking to keep pushing forward in the gym and on the court. Our guys still struggle a bit with their mental focus throughout these matches and they really beat themselves (in the loss to UNC). With this young team being fresh, we're looking to continue pushing their mental toughness to see how far they can push themselves."

The Flames will travel to Bloomington, Ind., for next Saturday's Hoosier-Illini Classic, where they could face several Midwest teams that have risen the ranks in recent years.

"We're really excited for that," Knapp said, noting that the first NCVF national rankings to determine postseason tournament seedings will be released.before or after that Indiana event. "It's going to be a fun matchup to see teams we normally don't see and see how you can pick them apart."

Competing for the first time this semester, Liberty's DII team, coached by former Flames Head Coach Bryan Rigg, pulled out a dramatic three-game victory over the Hokies in their final match of the day. The Flames will next be in action at the ECVA South Play Date at JMU before going to the East Coast Championships and the April 18-20 NCVF National Championships in Kansas City, Mo.

By Ted Allen/Staff Writer