The Dominican University men's volleyball team shook off a slow start, sweeping the Fontbonne University Griffins (33-31, 25-16, 25-17) on Sunday afternoon in the Igini Sports Forum to pick up their program-best sixth straight victory and move to 9-2 on the season and 5-1 in the Midwest Collegiate Volleyball League (MCVL).
 
Offensively, Dominican was consistent, hitting .265 for the match and .265 in the opening set but it was their defense that allowed Fontbonne to hit .290 in the first set and pick up 15 of their 29 kills for the match in the opening set while the Griffins were able to post a .290 attack percentage throughout the first set but hit just .093 for the match.
 
"I didn't like how we came out in the first set," commented Doug Burchett, the Stars' acting head coach. "We committed too many unforced errors early at the net and service line.  With that said, I thought we finally found a good rhythm in the second set and carried that into the third."
 
Dominican's Alex Coyne (Naperville, Ill.) ran the Stars' offense, dishing out 42 assists while picking up three kills on six attacks for himself.  The Stars' junior setter totaled 89 assists for the weekend, averaging 12.71 assists per set while leading Dominican to a .290 attack percentage.  On Sunday, Coyne used a variety of offensive weapons with Luke Spicer (St. Charles, Ill.) leading the way with 17 kills on just 29 swings.  Middle Mason Solbrig (Lindenhurst, Ill.) collected ten kills of his own while Charlie Spry (Barrington, Ill.) and Adam Eboli (Melrose Park, Ill.) knocked down eight and seven kills respectively.
 
"Alex did a nice job of getting our middles involved today," said Burchett.  "That efficiency early opened up things for Luke on the pin."
 
Defensively, Dominican posted eight total blocks with Solbrig in on four blocks (1 solo, 3 assisted) while Spry and Coyne collected three total blocks each.  In the back row, Spicer rounded out his second double-double of the season with a team-high 11 digs.
 
"Overall it was a good weekend," said Burchett. "Ultimately, we took care of business but need to keep working hard at playing at a high level on a consistent basis."
 
The Stars will take a quick break from MCVL play, hosting the Lakeland College Muskies for a non-conference tilt next Saturday, February 27, in the Igini Sports Forum.  The match is slated for a 3:00 p.m. start.