ADRIAN, Mich. – The Baldwin Wallace University men's volleyball team faced Adrian (Mich.) College in a Midwest Collegiate Volleyball League matchup inside the Merillat Sport and Fitness Center. Junior setter Brandon Long (Hinckley/Metea Valley, Ill.) notched his 2,000th career assist as the Yellow Jackets battled back, down two sets, to defeat the Bulldogs in five (18-25, 23-25, 27-25, 25-23, and 15-13).

BW (21-6, 4-0 MCVL) was led by junior right side hitter Nick Mazzone (Springboro/Bishop Fenwick) as he tallied 15 kills and nine digs. Long dished out 32 assists on the night to surpass the 2,000th assist mark on his career. Junior All-MCVL outside hitter Michael Beard (Hilliard/Darby) posted 11 kills, seven digs, and four aces.

Adrian (13-10, 0-3 MCVL) was led by junior outside hitter Chase Heuer as he totaled a match-high 22 kills and added seven digs.

1st Set

• BW was down 13-9 in set one, before tying the game at 15-15 with an ace by junior outside Nick Reilman (Medina/Walsh Jesuit)
• The Bulldogs went up again (19-16) forcing the Yellow Jackets to take a timeout
• Calling their second timeout of the game, BW found themselves down 22-18
• Adrian closed set one, 25-18 

2nd Set

• The Bulldogs again took a lead in set two, up 16-13, forcing BW to a timeout
• BW took its second timeout of the game, trailing 20-17
• Adrian notched back-to-back points to end the set, winning it 25-23

3rd Set

• Down 20-15, the Yellow Jackets tallied four straight points and with back-to-back aces by Beard, Adrian called a timeout only up one (20-19)
• A kill by Mazzone tied the game up at 22-22
• With Adrian holding a one-point advantage (25-24), a big block by freshman middle hitter Colby Whiteside (Powell/Olentangy Liberty) and Long put BW up one, forcing Adrian to take a break
• An error by the Bulldogs closed set three (27-25 BW)

4th Set

• Down 11-7, BW chipped away to tie the game at 15-15 and take a 16-15 advantage, forcing Adrian to a timeout
• Out of the break, three straight points for BW earned the Yellow Jackets the 19-15 lead
• A kill by freshman middle hitter Josh Steinitz (Towson, Md./Friends School of Baltimore) kept BW up 22-19 late in the game
• Despite Adrian bring the game within one point (23-22 BW), a kill by Reilman closed set four (25-23) and forced the tie-breaking fifth set

5th Set

• Back-to-back aces by Beard earned BW the early 3-0 advantage
• BW tallied four straight and a block by Whiteside and Mazzone put BW up 11-6, forcing Adrian to a timeout
• A kill by Reilman kept the Yellow Jackets up four points (13-9) late in the set
• Adrian tallied two straight points to tighten the gap, forcing BW to a timeout (13-11 BW)
• Reilman sealed the deal with a kill on the outside to win the set (15-13) and the match (3-2) 

The Yellow Jackets return to play on Saturday, March 25 as the team hosts the University of Mount Union for another MCVL showdown. The match is set to begin at 1:00 p.m. in the Ursprung Gymnasium inside of the Lou Higgins Center.