Salem, Va. - Closing out their final day on their Virginia trip, the Illinois Tech men's volleyball team left the "birthplace of the nation" with a victory under their belts, defeating Roanoke College 3-1 Saturday afternoon. The Scarlet Hawks improved to 2-3 on the season. The Maroons fell to 3-4.

The Scarlet Hawks received outstanding individual performances from Grant Couper (19 kills), David Singer (17 kills) and Elijah Johnson (43 assists).

Illinois Tech 3 - Roanoke 1 (25-10, 25-17, 23-25, 25-20)

• Set 1: After an early Maroons lead at 2-0, the Scarlet Hawks caught Roanoke even at 5-5. The Hawks then used separate runs of 7-0 and 6-0 to pull away from the Maroons to take set one.
• Set 2:  After an early tie score at 3-3, the Scarlet Hawks used a 7-0 run to take a 10-3 lead, and they never looked back. The Hawks would build an 11-point lead before closing out set two 25-17.
• Set 3: The Maroons flipped the script in set three, opening up with a 5-1 lead. Roanoke would hit four-point leads multiple times throughout the set. The Hawks would climb back into the set, however, pulling within one point three times, including down 24-23 before the Maroons secured set point.
• Set 4: Illinois Tech established a 5-1 lead early in set four, but the Maroons would chip away, eventually taking the lead at 14-13. Roanoke could not extend their lead beyond one point, however, and the Scarlet Hawks eventually overtook the Maroons 19-18. The Hawks finished up with a 6-2 run to earn match point.

Scarlet Hawk Standouts

• Grant Couper led the Hawks with 19 kills, a new career-high, and a .457 attack percentage.
• David Singer had 17 kills, a new career-high, and added 11 digs.
• Elijah Johnson had 43 assists, one under his career-high set against Trine 2/25/23. He also added 3 block assists.
• Alec Donald with 19 digs.
• Colten Farrell with 5 total blocks.
• Paul Henderson with 4 service aces.

Maroons Watch

• Michael Cummins paced the Maroons with 14 kills.
• Jackson Rutkowski added 10 kills.
• Kaeden Noble with 22 digs.

Inside The Box Score

• The Scarlet Hawks had a blistering .424 attack percentage in set one.
• The Hawks had a season-high 56 kills, 47 assists and 7 service aces in the match.

Up Next 
The Scarlet Hawks will take a short trip to Elgin, Illinois on Tuesday for a non-conference match against Judson College at 7:00 PM.