After 23 games played, the Goshen College men’s volleyball team is entering the latter half of its season. They have an overall record of 9-14 and a conference record of 4-8. After coming off an 18-day break, they currently sit seventh out of 10 teams in the Wolverine Hoosier Athletic Conference, which only takes the top six teams to its playoff tournament.

The Leafs recorded five-set victories in consecutive days on the road against Aquinas College and Cornerstone University on March 5 and 6. This was the first time that the Maple Leafs had defeated Cornerstone in over 4 years, and the first time head coach Wyatt Bollinger ’23 had beaten Cornerstone as either a player or coach. 

“Those were two that we absolutely had to have, and it was nice to see us pull up clutch in a situation like that, especially in a set against a tough team like Cornerstone,” Bollinger said.

After graduating only one senior, seven new players joined the team this season, bringing the roster size to 18. Despite this, the Maple Leafs only won one out of their first five games. 

Ryan Kabrich, a first-year middle blocker, has started for GC in 22 of its 23 games. He also set the program record for most individual blocks in a game with 11 against the Mount Vernon Nazarene Cougars on Feb. 6 at the Ruth Gunden Gymnasium. 

“That really put in perspective that all my work has paid off and I’m succeeding at the college level, which is something I’ve always wanted to do,” Kabrich said.

Ben Koop, captain and outside hitter, said, “Although they don’t have as many years playing collegiate volleyball under their belt, I don’t think you’d be able to tell by watching them play.” 

Despite the early losses, Bollinger, who is in his first year as head coach, is optimistic for the future. “That’s just part of the process in terms of building towards something successful … you’re going to have those ups and downs, especially in a first season when there’s a lot of new things being asked,” he said.

Coming up in GC’s schedule are conference rivals, such as MVNU, that they will need to beat to move into playoff contention. They currently sit one win behind the sixth-placed Cougars, but the Maple Leafs have played one less game.

Bollinger wants his team to end the season strong, catch some of the remaining teams on the schedule by surprise and make the playoffs. “We need a couple more wins to get there. We’re looking to play hard against Lawrence Tech. We’re going to try to surprise them and sneak one away there,” he said.

The Leafs’ next game is this Friday at the Lawrence Tech Blue Devils in Southfield, Michigan. The Blue Devils are currently ranked seventh in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics national rankings. 

With Reporting by Liam Shaw, Anton Alstrom-Brookhyser and Kate Bodiker.