PALOS HEIGHTS, Ill. – Winning their fourth in a row, and their second this season over a nationally-ranked opponent, Trinity earned a five-set decision over No. 11 Saint Xavier on Tuesday night, 17-25, 25-18, 15-25, 26-24, 15-13 inside DeVos Gymnasium. The win ends a run of 34 consecutive victories in the CCAC for Saint Xavier, a streak that dates over three years.

Alex Costa led the way for the Trolls (14-7, 6-4 CCAC), recording 18 kills with six aces in the win. Chris Dargan tallied 12 kills with five blocks, while Ryan Schmidt and Nick Mioni finished with 19 assists apiece.

The Cougars (15-4, 8-1 CCAC) came out strong, opening the match with a 6-2 run on their way to a solid 25-17 first-set victory in which they led from start to finish. Trinity bounced back in game two, with back-to-back aces by Costa opening an early 5-1 lead. Saint Xavier would briefly move in front 11-10, before the Trolls went on a 9-4 run that included a pair of kills and a block from Dargan to build a 19-14 advantage. Costa's fourth ace of the set gave Mike Hay the chance to even the match with his kill at 25-18.

Saint Xavier rallied again in game three, opening a 7-2 lead and using another four-point run later in the set to lead by as much as 18-9. The Cougars would score four of the final five points of the set to take a 2-1 lead in the match.

Trinity looked poised to force a fifth set after Dargan's kill gave the home team a 20-15 lead in game four, but the Cougars rallied with a 9-3 run to take the lead and earn match point at 24-23. An SXU service error opened the door for an ace from Caden Figus, and another Cougar error would give the Trolls the 26-24 win.

The fifth set would see a total of five lead changes, as Trinity opened with the first three points of the set, followed by Saint Xavier going on a 6-1 run to move in front 6-4. Dargan put the Trolls back in front at 8-7, but three of the next four points would go to the Cougars to give the visitors a 10-9 edge. Tied at 13-13, Costa would get the kill to give the Trolls match point, and the team would close out the victory on the next play.

The win snaps a nine-match slide against Saint Xavier, and is the first victory for the Trolls over the Cougars since 2018. Trinity will look for their fifth straight win on Wednesday night, when they travel outside of conference play for a rematch with Bethel (Ind.). First serve from Mishawaka, Ind. is set for 7:00 p.m. ET / 6:00 p.m. CT.