KENOSHA, Wis. – Concordia Wisconsin had a difficult challenge on Saturday against two top-4 nationally ranked opponents, and fell 3-0 (25-9, 25-11, 25-9) to third-ranked UC Santa Cruz and 3-0 (25-10, 25-15, 25-9) to fourth-ranked Carthage inside Tarble Arena.

THE BASICS
Final Score: No. 3 UC Santa Cruz 3, Concordia Wisconsin 0 (25-9, 25-11, 25-9); No. 4 Carthage 3, Concordia Wisconsin 0 (25-10, 25-15, 25-8)
Location: Tarble Arena (Kenosha, Wis.)
Records: No. 3 UC Santa Cruz (9-2), No. 4 Carthage (7-0), Concordia Wisconsin 0-8

QUOTING HEAD COACH CURTIS MADSON
"Tonight we had the opportunity to see two of the country's best teams. Our guys stepped up to the challenge and forced themselves to play disciplined volleyball. The results were great and the scores were not the focus. It was trying to see if we could force ourselves to perform under pressure. I think we saw growth and a side of our guys we have been trying to pull out of them all year. These matches will make us better for the rest of the season."

HOW IT HAPPENED
- Concordia Wisconsin was paced during the two matches combined by freshman Sam Rovik (Silver Lake, Wis.) who had nine kills combined and five digs. Freshman Matthew Korman (Roscoe, Ill.) directed the offense to the tune of 12 assists, while freshman Isaac Glynn (Byron, Minn.) had a team-high nine digs in the two matches.
- No. 3 UC Santa Cruz was powerful on offense, hitting .476 and serving 10 aces. The Banana Slugs had six players with at least three kills and Sam Wittert tallied a match-best 18 assists. Raymond Cascio had four service aces.
- No. 4 Carthage was difficult to stop on the service, with 19 aces in the win. They had five players with at least four kills and Jacob Allard recorded 26 aces. Kai Cromwell and Mason Moore had seven and six service aces, respectively.

NEXT ON THE SCHEDULE
- Concordia Wisconsin hosts Maranatha Baptist and Fontbonne on Friday at 3 and 7 pm in non-conference matches inside the R. John Buuck Field House.