Oshkosh II Ends Season With Division III National Championship (4-6-10)
The UW-Oshkosh men's volleyball team won its fourth national title in program history at the National Collegiate Volleyball Federation Division III national championship as the Titans' Division II team captured the event without losing a set (April 1-3) in Louisville, Ky.
Previously, UW-Oshkosh won the 1996 Division II title and the 2006 and 2007 Division I national crowns. The Titans have also captured second on three other occasions, one at the Division III level and two playing for the Division I national championship.
UW-Oshkosh II (60-5) dominated pool play to start the tournament on Thursday by defeating the University of Pittsburgh (Pa.) II, 25-18, 25-15, the University of Miami (Ohio) II, 25-14, 25-19 and the University of Southern California II, 25-11, 25-14. The Titans entered the tournament as the second seed overall after placing second at the MIVA championship the previous weekend.
Matt Maciejewski (So. - Greenfield), Nick Mueller (Fr. - Kenosha) and Jordan Mattingly (Jr. - Kaukauna) each had six kills in the win over the Panthers. Bob Hall (Fr. - Appleton) added 22 assists, Jim Hall (Sr. - Appleton) three digs and eight players recorded at least one block.
Parker Gross (So. - Appleton) led the offensive charge against the Red Hawks with eight kills on nine attempts. Mueller collected three service aces and Bob Hall dished out 23 assists. Brian Fox (Jr. - Fond du Lac) provided two service aces and Luke Coyle (So. - Wauwatosa) slammed down four kills.
The Trojans provided little resistance for the Titans as the squad hit .643 in the first frame. Coyle led the team with six kills on seven attempts, Bob Hall handed out 21 assists and amassed three service aces and three digs, Dominic Judkins (Fr. - Kaukauna) tallied four kills and two service aces and Alex Reynolds (Sr. - South Milwaukee) and David Mills (Jr. - Evansville) came off the bench to record three kills each.
In Friday's action, the Titans advanced to the gold bracket for the seventh consecutive year by walloping Illinois State University II, 25-18, 25-12 and Indiana University II, 25-18, 25-20.
Mattingly topped the team with five kills against the Redbirds, while Gus Odorizzi (Jr. - Pleasant Prairie) and Mueller each had four put-downs. Bob Hall had 19 assists, two service aces, five digs and two blocks and Jim Hall provided two service aces and five digs.
After slamming down 14 kills in the first set against the Hoosiers, UW-Oshkosh II still managed to win by five points in the second frame despite committing nine hitting errors. Coyle led the team with ten kills and Bob Hall had 17 assists and five digs.
In championship play on Saturday, the Titans' offense came to life in all three matches to help the team to the national title. After claiming the first set against Cal Poly San Luis Obispo II, 25-17 the Titans found themselves trailing 14-12. After a time-out the Titans went on a 13-3 scoring run to register a 25-17 win in set two over the Mustangs.
Mueller led the team with six kills, Jim Hall had five digs and Bob Hall dished out 20 assists and added two blocks. Gross and Maciejewski each collected five kills and three blocks and Odorizzi had three blocks.
After sneaking out the first set, UW-Oshkosh II throttled The Ohio State University II, 25-23, 25-13 to reach the finals. Mattingly provided eight kills, four service aces and three digs, Jim Hall seven digs and Mueller nine kills in the win over the Buckeyes. Maciejewski added six kills and Bob Hall handed out 25 assists and scooped up five digs.
In its fourth meeting against the University of Illinois II on the year, UW-Oshkosh II evened the season series at two matches each with an emotional 25-18, 25-23 victory.
After a relatively easy win in set one, the Titans came back from a 22-21 deficit in the second frame. Tied at 23-23, UW-Oshkosh received a service ace from Mattingly to go up 24-23. On the next play Gross and Maciejewski combined for a block, the only one of the set for the Titans to post the victory.
Mueller provided 11 kills, including three straight during an important run in the second set to pace the Titans. Mattingly added six kills and four digs and Gross finished with four blocks. Odorizzi claimed five kills, Jim Hall secured eight digs and Bob Hall dished out 30 assists and played great defense with seven digs.
In preventing the University of Illinois II from claiming its second consecutive Division III national title, the Titans finished with 31 kills and five team blocks.
For his efforts, Mueller was named the NCVF Division III national player of the year. Mattingly claimed his second straight All-America First-Team honor and Bob Hall was also mentioned on the First-Team.
"I am very excited for our Division II guys," said head coach Brian Schaefer. "As a unit they set a goal to stick together throughout the season, play hard every day in practice and to win a national title. I am proud of them for accomplishing all three and for having an outstanding year."
The match ended what was a story book season for the UW-Oshkosh II squad. They set a team record with 60 wins, won the MIVA and WVC regular season titles and the WVC state championship and beat four NCVF Division I team ranked in the top-25 in the nation.
"I am equally happy for Jim Hall, Greg Lulich and Chris Schinner to go out on top," added Schaefer. "All three have been dedicated for many years to the program and it is a great accomplishment to go out as seniors as national champions."
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