IMMACULATA, Pa. – The Gallaudet University men's volleyball team is moving on in the 2026 United East Men's Volleyball Tournament after a thrilling come-from-behind 3-1 victory over the Mighty Macs from Immaculata University on Wednesday night in the quarterfinal round.

The fifth-seeded Bison dropped a tough 24-26 first set to the fourth-seeded Mighty Macs but then reversed swept the host by the scores of 25-20, 25-17, 25-22.

The match really turned into Gallaudet's favor midway through the third set as the Bison trailed 8-9 but then scored 11 of the next 12 points to take a 19-10 lead.

In the fourth set, Gallaudet jumped out to a 6-1 lead but Immaculata responded and took the lead on several occasions. The Bison regained the lead, 14-11, but the Mighty Macs came back to knot things up at 16 apiece. From there neither team led more than two points until the end.

Gallaudet first year Pax Holcomb (Frederick, Md.) served match point for the buff and blue and came up with a huge dig that went to his uncle, sophomore setter Troy Holcomb (Fremont, Calif.), who set the ball to sophomore libero Elian Zfati (Brooklyn, N.Y.). Zfati made a two-handed bump over the net to Immaculata. The Mighty Macs came up with the dig and set the ball, but their middle hitter jumped too soon and swung and missed on the attack attempt. The whiff allowed the ball to hit the court and score the 25th point in favor of Gallaudet. That point ended the match as the Bison bench rushed the court to celebrate the playoff win.

"I want to acknowledge the great team Immaculata has. Josh Elliott, their head coach, has done a great job over there, and we had some great talks before and after both our matches," said Gallaudet coach Ben Campman, now in his second season leading the program. "The whole program could feel the support we had in our community and we appreciated all the well wishes we felt from our community and the many that made the trip from D.C., Frederick, and even outside the DMV to support us. Having a support system like that means so much to us and we are so thankful for all of our Bison supporters."

This is the first United East tournament win for the Bison. Gallaudet has now doubled its win total from a year ago when the Bison finished the 2025 campaign with a 5-17 mark. The Bison now stand at 10-16 overall while the Mighty Macs end their season with a 6-11 record.

"In just our second year, we have already had a 10-win season and have won our first playoff game. I know I personally feel blessed to have the assistants I do, and the team I do," said Campman. "The amount these guys have learned and grown in two years is incredible. I cannot speak highly enough of them and how hard they work."

Gallaudet advances to the semifinal round where the Bison will face top-seed Lancaster Bible College (15-11) on Wednesday, April 8, at 7 p.m.

The Bison were led in victory by sophomore outside hitter Zachary Bippus (Fishers, Ind.) who tallied 17 kills while fellow sophomore outside hitter Kodi Lee (Lehi, Utah) added 12 kills. Setter Troy Holcomb passed out 37 assists and made two blocks while Pax Holcomb served up a match best three aces to go with nine digs, including the clutch final dig for the Bison. GU finished the match with nine service aces and six blocks.

Immaculata was paced by Josh McGurl's match-high 21 kills, 11 digs and four blocks (two solo) in the loss.

BISON TRACKS

• This was GU's first win over Immaculata in three meetings since the 2025 season
• The Bison have won five of the last nine sets in Alumnae Hall
• Gallaudet avenges an earlier season five-set loss to the Mighty Macs on their home court

UP NEXT
Gallaudet will travel to Lancaster, Pa., on Wednesday, April 8, to face the top-seeded Chargers in the United East men's volleyball tournament semifinals at 7 p.m. The Bison are 0-5 against the Chargers since 2013.

"We are really looking forward to our match Wednesday against LBC. They are an incredible team and Coach Brubaker runs a great program over there. I know we played them to one of the tightest matches they played in conference this year so our team is excited to get another shot at them," added Campman.