The Dominican University Stars, ranked seventh in the AVCA Division III Men's Preseason Coaches' Poll, opened the 2019 season on Tuesday evening, taking on Division II Lewis University in Romeoville.  The Stars fell to the Flyers, who are ranked eighth in the AVCA Division I/II Men's Poll, in four sets, 25-17, 21-25, 25-20, 25-11.
 
"Tonight was a great opportunity for us to measure our team against an excellent Flyer program," commented Dominican University head men's volleyball coach Dan Pawlikowski following the Stars' season opener. "We learned a lot about our group as well as what the next level looks like. Obviously, we would love to win, but this was an invaluable experience for our guys. I hope it will translate to better performances in the future. Congrats and thanks to Coach Friend, his staff and Lewis men's volleyball."
 
The Stars, paced by Ethan Klosak's match-high 17 kills, kept up with the Flyers for the first three sets, with the sides collecting 36 kills apiece.  In the fourth set, Lewis would not allow Dominican to string together any runs, going 10-for-11 on sideouts as the Flyers closed out the win.
 
Jack McGuire doled out 24 assists for the Stars as Dominican hit .132 in the loss. Klosak's 17 kills came on 43 attempts with the Stars' preseason All-American hitting .186 on the night.  Sophomore libero Bregin DeMarco led the defensive effort for Dominican, collecting 12 digs.
 
For the Flyers, Tyler Mitchem knocked down a team-high 15 kills on 23 swings without committing an error while Julian Moses added 13 kills on 26 attempts.
 
Dominican, 0-1, returns to Division III play on Saturday, January 26, hosting the Augustana College Vikings and Mount St. Joseph Lions for a tri-match at the Igini Sports Forum.  The action kicks off at 12:00 p.m.