Eagles Move to 1-0 in MSC After Big Day From Pacheco

By Mike DeVader, Reinhardt Director of Athletic Communications & Media

Photo Courtesy of Greg Spell/G-RoxPhotos.com

LAURINBURG, N.C. – Men's volleyball got its second win of the young season in the Mid-South Conference road opener at St. Andrews (N.C.) on Thursday evening after taking apart the Knights in four sets – 25-22, 22-25, 27-25, 25-22.

Victor Pacheco was outstanding in all phases of the match today for the Eagles, as he combined to hit .382 with 19 kills and four aces. Chase Cross was also in double figures with scores at 11 (.409).

"Huge win for the team tonight against a St. Andrews team that was more than up to the fight," head coach CJ Shearer said. "We've been working on a ton in practices, and it was huge to see those things start to show as the match wore on… This is a big culture win. These type of matches in the past we haven't always grabbed, and I thought it was amazing how the team responded tonight; everything earned, nothing given. A full team effort today as guys played whatever role was given.

Victor and Chase led numbers wise, but Dalton Fellows was a huge reason we won that match – stepping up big with four kills in the fourth set while picking up an injured teammate. I'm proud of this group and what they showed today. Everything to God, and we look forward to Saturday's match."

Reinhardt soared into the matchup with a stellar opening game with a cumulative .476, 12 kills and a match-low two errors. The clubs would go back and forth in both of the opening sets – each winning by the score of 25-22 – as St. Andrews evened the contest at 1-1 heading into the third stanza.

The Eagles would then have to stop the momentum of the Knights in set three as they pulled out to a 10-6 lead midway through the game. The hometown team would go on 10-4 run to regain the advantage, 16-14, after four-consecutive tallies forced the hosts to call timeout.

The scoring would bounce from one team to the other after the lead changed hands or went all-square on multiple occasions. Reinhardt would find itself in prime position for another victory, but St. Andrews rebounded from a 23-20 deficit to score five of the next six tallies to force set point.

Pacheco would step up to the plate once more and earn a kill and help the Eagles take the next three points and a 2-1 lead heading to set four – a stanza where they would stay strong all the way through to the end and hold off a late Knight run in another 25-22 decision.

Collectively, Reinhardt hit .327 with 48 total kills and was dominant on the other end of the net with 12 solo blocks and four assisted rejections.

Pacheco, Dalton Fellows and Matthew Corrales (eight digs) all earned a trio of blocks in the win.

Ricardo Mujica (seven digs) helped get the offense in the right spots with 39 assists.

The league slate continues on Saturday morning at Truett McConnell (Ga.) beginning at 11:30 a.m.

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For more information on Reinhardt Men's Volleyball, please click here.