GRAND RAPIDs, Mich. – A furious comeback effort came up just short for the Calvin men's volleyball team as the Knights fell in a five-set thriller to Wabash College Saturday afternoon at Van Noord Arena.

Wabash (13-7 overall, 2-2 MCVL) defeated the Knights (7-13 overall, 0-2 MCVL) 25-23, 25-23, 21-25, 20-25, 16-14.

Wabash used a 6-1 run to claim set one and then scored three unanswered points in set two to take a 2-0 lead in the match.

Calvin upped the intensity to claim sets three and four. Calvin led 18-12 in set three and closed out the set with a 3-0 run. In set four, Calvin led 21-19 and pulled away with a 4-1 run.

Calvin led 11-9 in set five but Wabash rattled off four straight points to lead 13-11. The Knights scored the next two points including a kill by sophomore Jack Davison (Lowell, Mich./Lowell HS) to tie the set 13-13. Wabash built a 14-13 lead but senior Gabriel Laughlin (Grand Rapids, Mich./ West Michigan Aviation Academy) came up with a big block to tie the score at 14.

Davison led Calvin in defeat with 13 kills, four digs and a pair of aces. Laughlin had 11 kills, five block assists and three digs. Sophomore Nick Bultje (Byron Center, Mich./South Christian HS) had seven kills and seven blocks. Sophomore Cameron Dogger (Holland, Mich.) had 27 assists and three digs. Freshman Bryce Broekhuizen (Kalamazoo, Mich./Kalamazoo Christian HS) and sophomore Brady Gydauskas (Naperville, IL Neuqua Valley High School) had six kills apiece. Freshman Ezekiel Jalan (Oconomowoc, WI Arrowhead) also had 13 assists and a pair of digs.

Calvin returns to action next Friday when it travels to Mount Union for a 7 p.m. match.