HARRISONBURG, Va. — The Thiel men's volleyball team bounced back strong on the second day of the Continental Volleyball Conference (CVC) East Division Weekend at Eastern Mennonite University, posting a dramatic come-from-behind win over #11 ranked team in the latest AVCA poll, Stevenson University, and picking up their third win of the season over host EMU.

The Tomcats dropped their first, and only, set of the day when Stevenson took set one 25-21. The Tomcats rebounded, as a Michael Whitelock (Pittsburgh, Pa./Schenley) kill on set point gave the Tomcats a 25-20 win in set two. The third set was heavily contested by both sides, as the two teams were tied at 24-24. One of Dante McCoy (Reading, Pa./Holy Name)'s 12 kills gave the Blue and Gold a slight 25-24 edge, and a subsequent attack error by Stevenson gave the Tomcats the set 26-24, and a 2-1 match lead.
 
In the decisive fourth set, the Tomcats got out to an early 14-9 lead behind a pair of kills by Whitelock and Kyle Turkalj (Greensburg, Pa./Hempfield Area). After a Stevenson timeout, Thiel outscored their opponent 5-4 to stretch their lead to 19-13 before Stevenson called its second, and final, timeout of the set. The Tomcats proceeded to close out the Mustang, with a John Turner (Cambridge Springs, Pa./Cambridge Springs) kill acting as the set, and match, point for Thiel.
 
Whitelock registered a season-high 16 kills in the win while Turner was right behind him with 14 kills. McCoy tallied his second double-double of the season, ending the match with 12 kills and a season-best 17 digs. Ian Phillips (Meadville, Pa./Meadville) added a team-high 18 digs, while setter Charlie Tindall (Tarentum, Pa./Deer Lakes) dished out 57 assists and chipped in nine digs.

In the second match Thiel took down EMU in three sets, 25-22, 25-18, 25-10. McCoy was tops on the team with 13 kills while also adding four digs. Dylan Lasher (Ford City, Pa./Elderton) had another solid performance with 11 kills. Phillips added 11 digs, while Tindall recorded 35 assists and seven digs.

With the wins, Thiel is now in second place of the east division of the CVC with a 10-6 overall record, and a 2-1 record in CVC play. The Tomcats return to action on March 16, when they travel to Milwaukee, Wisconsin to take on  Fontbonne University, Milwaukee School of Engineering, and Medaille College