Volleyball Recap: Ben Soleymani Key Part of Team Effort in Patriots Win

Joe Braun

Assists

05/22/25 @ Whitehall	30
05/20/25 vs Louis E. Dieruff	25
05/08/25 vs Parkland	46
04/30/25 vs Liberty	34
04/28/25 @ Emmaus	46
+ 29 more games

Whitehall came into Thursday's contest looking for another win against Freedom, but Joe Braun wouldn't allow it. The Patriots won by a set and slipped past the Zephyrs 3-2 with plenty of help from Braun, who had 15 digs, ten kills, and two blocks. He has been hot for a while, having also posted 12 or more assists the last 34 times he's played.

The match was a true back-and-forth as no team won consecutive sets, but in the end it was Freedom who won the one that mattered. The match finished with set scores of 25-22, 22-25, 25-22, 22-25, 15-12.

Freedom's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Ben Soleymani led the charge by getting ten blocks and eight kills. Those ten blocks gave Soleymani a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Dylan Shupp, who had 14 kills and two blocks.

The win made it two in a row for Freedom and bumps their season record up to 19-5. As for Whitehall, their loss ended a 15-game streak of wins at home dating back to last season and dropped them to 17-5.

Freedom wasted no time getting back out on the court and has already played their next matchup, a 3-2 defeat against Emmaus on the 27th. Whitehall does not have any more games scheduled as of now.