Bolingbrook's Mitchem Leads Lewis U Into MIVA Tournament

ROMEOVILLE, IL —After capping off a 17-2 regular season with a back-to-back wins at Loyola last week, earning the program's second straight Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (MIVA) title in the process, the nationally-ranked Lewis University men's volleyball team heads into this weekend's MIVA Tournament as the No. 1 seed.

The Flyers, who play at the NCAA Division I level and were ranked No. 2 in the most recent RPI rankings and No. 4 in the latest Coaches Poll, open up conference tournament play against No. 8 seed Quincy at 7 p.m. Saturday at Neil Carey Arena in Romeoville.

Redshirt senior Tyler Mitchem, a 2016 graduate of Bolingbrook High, is not only one of the Flyers' best players, but he is regarded as one of the nation's best, as well. A 6-foot-11 middle blocker, Mitchem was a 2020 American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) All-America First-Team selection, and through April 4, he ranked No. 3 nationally with a .490 hitting percentage and No. 4 with a 1.284 blocks per set average.

"Tyler has worked extremely hard to be one of the best middle hitters in the country," Lewis head coach Dan Friend said. "He is top five in hitting percentage and blocks overall in NCAA men's volleyball. He's also put tremendous effort into his serving and defense, which have improved immensely.

"He served as a captain for us this year and took several steps in his overall growth as a person. He has been helping guys not only on the court, but off it as well. Tyler is a big reason for our success."

Beginning this weekend, each MIVA Tournament game will be played on the home court of the higher seed, with the final scheduled for April 25. The winner receives one of five automatic bids to the NCAA Tournament. There also are two at-large bids.

Last year's NCAA Tournament was canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic. But in 2019, Lewis reached the NCAA Final Four in Long Beach CA, losing to 3-1 to Hawaii in the semifinal. Mitchem was an AVCA All-America Second-Team selection that year, and he led the nation in hitting percentage .504.

After that season, Mitchem played for the U.S. Men's Collegiate National Team at the World University Games in Naples, Italy. Mitchem also was named to that team last season, though all competitions were canceled because of the pandemic.

At Bolingbrook High, Mitchem was an all-conference performer as a junior before concentrating on club volleyball with Sports Performance as a senior.

An aviation aerospace technology major, Mitchem's family has its share of athletic and academic accomplishments. His father James played basketball at DePaul, helping the Blue Demons reach the 1979 Final Four. Last summer, James Mitchem retired as the Superintendent of the Valley View School District. Tyler's mother Jackie played basketball at Lewis from 1987 to 91.