No. 3 Endicott, No. 4 SUNY Poly Advance to Semifinal Round of NEVC Championship
No. 3 Endicott 3, No. 6 Sage 0
The third-seeded Endicott men's volleyball team defeated sixth-seeded Sage, 3-0, by set scores of 25-15, 25-14, and 25-23 in the first round of the New England Volleyball Conference (NEVC) Tournament on Wednesday night at MacDonald Gymnasium.
Endicott produced a .410 hitting percentage to secure its 13th straight trip to the conference semifinals.
Aidan Iacovelli (South Windsor, Conn.) led all student-athletes in the contest with 11 kills (.556).
Jake Laborde (Glenmont, N.Y.) added nine putaways (.333), while Corey Klass Jr. (Beverly, Mass.) and Jackson Gray (Glenmont, N.Y.) registered seven and five kills (.545, .571), respectively.
Matty Tiernan (Bradford, R.I.) helped the Gulls register their second-best hitting percentage of the season (.466 vs. Vermont State Johnson, W 3-0) behind a 31-assist effort.
John Lindheimer (Albany, N.Y.) led Sage with eight kills.
No. 3 Endicott (13-11) takes on No. 2 SUNY Potsdam in the NEVC Semifinals on Saturday, April 12 at 7 PM, on the campus of No. 1 Nichols College.
No. 4 Suny Poly 3, No. 5 Bard 2
The SUNY Poly men's volleyball team is advancing to the second round of the NEVC playoffs, after defeating the Bard College Raptors in a tightly contested five set battle. Multiple Wildcats shined, including Peter Gottler who finished with 14 kills and Andrew Baaki who ended the game with 4 block assists and 10 kills. Ansel Waisler and Sidney Stein led the offensive attack for Bard, finishing with 18 and 16 kills, respectively. Waisler and Gideon Jacob each chipped in 11 digs for Bard.
The Wildcats opened the match with a strong offensive showing led by Adam Brawn and Andrew Baaki, who both connected on multiple kills early. Setter Joshua Slater controlled the tempo, dishing out precise sets to a variety of hitters, including Zach Latino and Peter Gottler. Despite Bard's Ansel Waisler tallying four kills in the frame and Lincoln Grisso adding energy at the net, errors plagued the Raptors, allowing SUNY Poly to pull away late.
Bard responded with a more composed effort in the second set, capitalizing on SUNY Poly's service errors. Waisler continued his strong play, recording a service ace and several key kills. Sidney Stein emerged as a weapon, and Gideon Jacob's serving helped build momentum. SUNY Poly struggled with consistency, and the Raptors held on to even the match at one set apiece.
In the most evenly matched set of the night, Bard rode the hot hand of Waisler and Stein once again. A timely service ace from Grisso and contributions from Moises Arteaga gave Bard a narrow edge. SUNY Poly kept pace with balanced play, including kills from Corey Hollingsworth and Gottler, but a late push from the Raptors helped them take a 2-1 lead in the match.
With their backs against the wall, the Wildcats bounced back in dominating fashion. Gottler came alive offensively with several emphatic kills, while Slater continued to facilitate a dynamic attack. SUNY Poly took advantage of Bard's unforced errors, especially on serve-receive, and never trailed after the opening points. Defensive blocks from Pearse Esposito and Baaki helped neutralize Bard's attackers.
In a nail-biting fifth set, both teams traded points with neither leading by more than two until the very end. Waisler and Stein kept Bard within reach, while Hollingsworth stepped up for SUNY Poly with a clutch ace and a crucial kill. The decisive blow came from Gottler, who put down the final point off a Slater set to seal the win for the Wildcats.
The Wildcats will now hit the road to square off with the No. 1 seed Nichols College.
ABOUT THE NEVC
The NEVC is a NCAA Division III single-sport conference sponsoring the sport of men’s volleyball. The conference is comprised of seven institutions, Bard College, Endicott College, Nichols College, SUNY Polytechnic Institute, SUNY Potsdam, Russell Sage College and Vermont State University – Johnson.