The men’s strong performance last weekend resulted in a second-place finish. There were 32 teams that competed in the Division I part of the tournament. Some of them were NCAA teams, not club. In the pool play Saturday, Marquette’s men defeated Minnesota 2-0, Ohio State, 2-1, and then lost to Miami of Ohio, 1-2.

“Our goal was to go in, play hard and win,” said junior president and right side hitter Chuck Warner. “We were aware of how most of the teams in the tournament played so we knew the competition would be tough. But we knew we had the ability and talent to win.”

In the single elimination tournament Sunday, the men were unstoppable and made it to the championship game. They went 3-0, defeating Michigan State, Illinois, and Columbia (NY).

“One of the best parts of this tournament was beating Michigan State, a Big Ten school,” said vice president and setter, junior John McPheters. “They’re one of our biggest rivals and it was nice to come out on top.”

The men lost in the championship game to Indiana.

“Our second place finish puts us in a position where teams are going to be out to get us,” head coach Brian Sharkey said. “In past years the tournament finalists go on to be ranked in the top ten in the country. I think we deserve that right now, but we still have some things to iron out.”

The Marquette men’s volleyball team has several more weeks of competition. On Nov. 22, the team hosts the Marquette Throwdown.