IRVINE, Calif. – The Concordia University Irvine men's volleyball kicked off the 2024 season with a sweep in their home opener against Long Island University. The scores were 29-27, 25-18, and 25-20.
 
Three freshman started for the Golden Eagles and made an immediate impact on the court. Christian Galoppo led CUI with 13 kills with Ties Cornelissen added six. Yotam Briger started as the setter and dished out 32 assists while all three players added six digs each throughout the match.
 
Gage Doble contributed with seven kills and four digs from the outside. Middles made their presence on the court as they had an impressive match with Maxwell McCullough earning six kills on 12 attempts and no errors. Gil Herold had four kills while hitting an impressive .429.
 
"Our controlled touches and our quality in transition, and great decisions by our middles was awesome to see," said interim head coach Chris Seiffert. "It was absolutely a collective effort. There were some individual struggles throughout but it was really good to see the team stay together and help each other out."
 
The opening set was the first set of the season and it was a nail-biter as the score toggled both ways for each team and going beyond the usual 25 points. A kill from Galoppo and ace from middle McCullough sealed the first set victory by just two points.
 
The Golden Eagles broke away in the second and third set and they did not allow the Sharks to earn more than two consecutive points. The Green and Gold held their opponents hitting percentage to negative and 0 in those two sets.
 
The Golden Eagles will be back in the CU Arena as they take on Springfield College on Friday Jan. 12 with a 7 p.m. start time.
 
To see the full CUI men's volleyball schedule click HERE.