Box Score
Lourdes opened the home portion of its 2014 season on Wednesday evening in impressive fashion, cruising past Siena Heights 25-8, 25-13, 25-18 at Tam-o-Shanter in Great Lakes Conference action.
 
After surrendering the first point of the match, Lourdes scored 16 straight off of the serve of Jo'Lon Clark (Compton, Calif./Long Beach Poly H.S.), including four aces.  The Gray Wolves were in control of the set from there, hitting .538 while holding the Saints to a -.130 hitting percentage to start the match.
 
"We got off to a nice start in the match and let the momentum carry us from there," head coach Greg Reitz stated after the win.  "It's important to win the home matches in our league and this was a good start to the homestand."
 
In set two Lourdes again fell behind 1-0, but scored the next three points and never trailed the rest of the set.  Leading 12-10, the Gray Wolves went on an 11-1 run, capitalizing on the service of Steve Barcus (Mount Vernon, Ohio/Mount Vernon H.S.) and Clark.  Siena Heights again hit negative for the set, -.038, and Lourdes committed just two errors to build the 2-0 lead.
 
The third set started identical to the first two, with the Saints scoring first only to have Lourdes respond, taking a 7-3 lead.  Siena Heights fought back to tie the set at nine, but Clark served up a 7-0 run and the Gray Wolves never looked back.  CJ Rilveria (Kula, Hawaii/Kekaulike H.S.) spearheaded another 5-0 spurt with a pair of aces.
 
Lourdes hit .345 for the match as a team, led by Frank Craig (Jacksonville, Fla./Englewood H.S.) and his .538 hitting night.  He had a team-leading eight kills and added three blocks while Clark tallied seven kills, hit .500, and had six digs to go along with his four aces.  Garrett Jones (Las Vegas, Nev./Las Vegas H.S.) added seven kills while Barcus handed out 22 assists.  Brad Miller (Convoy, Ohio/Crestview H.S.) led the Gray Wolves with seven digs while Julian Rivera (Bayamon, P.R./Wesleyan Academy) had a match-high four blocks.
 
"Jo'Lon really played a strong all-around match for us tonight," Reitz added.  "We had lots of guys contribute in positive ways, which is key to our success."
 
Gilius Blinstrubas led Siena Heights (1-2, 0-1 GLC) with eight kills while Allanderson Meira had 12 digs.  The Saints hit -.058 for the match.
 
Lourdes (4-1, 2-0) will continue its four-match homestand on Friday evening, entertaining Robert Morris (Ill.).  First serve is set for 7 p.m. at Tam-o-Shanter.