McLean County Times

The Illinois Wesleyan University men's volleyball team is set to face Carthage College in an upcoming match. The game will take place on Saturday, March 9, at Tarble Arena in Kenosha, Wisconsin. This match is part of the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW) competition.

Illinois Wesleyan enters the game with a record of 10-8 overall and 1-2 in the CCIW. The team recently faced a setback against Augustana College, losing in four sets on March 6. During that match, junior Vince DiCosola achieved a milestone by surpassing 1000 career assists, becoming the first player in program history to reach this mark. Freshman Bryce Williams led the team with nine kills.

Senior Michael Eastman has been a key player for Illinois Wesleyan, leading the team with 178 kills and maintaining a .263 attack percentage. He averages 3.18 kills per set. Williams follows with 131 kills, while junior Jake Kougan has contributed 91 kills. Eastman also leads in service aces with 22 this season.

DiCosola and freshman Brenden Reutter have been instrumental in setting up attacks for the Titans throughout the season. DiCosola has recorded 276 assists, averaging 5.02 per set, while Reutter has provided 239 assists at an average of 4.69 per set.

Defensively, sophomore Jace Milka leads Illinois Wesleyan with 162 digs, ranking second in the CCIW for both total digs and digs per set at an average of 2.61 per set.

This will be the seventh meeting between Illinois Wesleyan and Carthage College's Firebirds, who have won all previous encounters including their last matchup on March 25, 2023. Carthage currently holds an overall record of 8-5 and is tied at 1-1 in CCIW play after defeating North Central College on February 28.

The match will be available for streaming online along with live statistics.