KENOSHA, Wis. — No. 3 Carthage defeated No. 6 Southern Virginia in straight sets Saturday, 25-19, 25-23, 25-19, to earn a berth in the NCAA Division III Men’s Volleyball Final Four. The win sends the Firebirds to the national semifinals for the first time since 2022 and marks the program’s third semifinal appearance under head coach JW Kieckhefer.

Carthage improved to 24-3 with the victory, while Southern Virginia closed its season at 29-6. The Firebirds took control early in the opening set, using a kill from Ryan Bartz to move in front 7-4 before extending the advantage to 12-9 on a kill by Ryan Monahan. After the Knights cut the margin to three, Carthage responded with three straight points, highlighted by kills from Monahan and Bartz along with a service ace from Joe Kolwicz, and went on to claim the set, 25-19.

Southern Virginia held the upper hand for much of the second set and built an 11-8 lead before later extending the margin to six. Carthage answered late, rallying to tie the score at 23 behind two Bartz kills. Ryan Morey followed with a kill, and Ruben Emmerich added a solo block to give the Firebirds a 25-23 win and a two-set advantage.

In the third set, Carthage opened with an 8-1 run, with a Ben Heise ace helping establish the early separation. Kills from Heise and Hudson Sweitzer pushed the lead to 15-8. Southern Virginia cut the deficit to five, but a block by Emmerich and Heise, along with a Knights attack error, brought up match point. Another attack error ended the set at 25-19 and secured the sweep.

Carthage hit .591 in the first set and .400 in the second. Bartz led all players with 13 kills, while Heise added nine and finished with a team-high three service aces. Emmerich recorded six blocks, and Morey dished out 29 assists.

Carthage will face Wittenberg in the NCAA semifinals on Thursday, April 23, at 6:30 p.m. in Springfield, Massachusetts.