KENOSHA, WIS.—The 2020 season opener pitted the Illinois Institute of Technology men's volleyball team at #6 Carthage College on Saturday afternoon. The Scarlet Hawks dropped a 3-0 decision, but showed flashes of potential after out-hitting the Red Men .207 - .095 in the second set.

"We saw a high-level of competition today, and I told the guys afterwards that we'll be seeing that level a lot this year," said IIT head men's volleyball coach Mark Johnston. "Matches like that show us exactly what we need to work on, and what we need to address in the gym this week. Very strong matches next week with St. Xavier and North Central, two winnable games. Excited to play at home on Friday."

Andriy Bench paced the Scarlet Hawks with 10 kills, while senior Jannik Birkholz fed him with a team-high 18 assists. Derek Bostick paced IIT defensively with eight digs.

The Scarlet Hawks came out firing after they dropped the first set 25-13. They outhit the Red Men .207 - .095 in set number two, led by Bench's four kills in the frame. The 13 service errors for IIT in the second frame doomed them in a 25-20 setback to the Red Men. Errors continued to be costly for IIT as they committed 11 total in the third set, where they fell 25-10. 

Illinois Tech finished the match with a .034 hitting mark and 22 kills. Matt Slivinski and Braeden Waumans each notched seven kills for Carthage. Slivinski added five aces, while Mike Motyka posted a game-high 25 assists for the Red Men.

The Scarlet Hawks will return to action on Friday, January 31 when they host St. Xavier at 7:00 p.m.