MEN'S VOLLEYBALL EARNS SPLIT OF TRI-MATCH
CHICOPEE, MA, Jan. 26, 2008 - Elms College freshman outside hitter Alberto Bravo (Toa Baja, Puerto Rico) knocked down a combined 43 kills and sophomore setter Ivan Andujar (Carolina, Puerto Rico) handed out 116 assists in two matches to help the Blazers earn a split of Saturday's men's volleyball tri-match at the Maguire Center.
Elms College fell to Newbury College 3-1 (25-30, 30-26, 30-13, 32-30) in a North East Collegiate Volleyball Association (NECVA) New England Division match to open the day.
The Blazers, however, rebounded with a hard-fought 3-2 (30-26, 30-28, 27-30, 24-30, 15-13) win over SUNY-New Paltz in the final match of the day.
Newbury earned a sweep of its two matches with a 3-1 (31-29, 25-30, 30-27, 30-23) win over SUNY-New Paltz.
With its sweep, Newbury improved to 5-1 overall, 1-0 NECVA New England. Elms College won its first match of the year to move to 1-3, 1-2 NECVA New England, while SUNY-New Paltz remained winless at 0-7.
For Elms College in its win over SUNY-New Paltz, Bravo pounded out 29 kills and hit .358, freshman outside hitter Carlos DeLeon-Gomez (Carolina, Puerto Rico) added 19 kills, freshman middle blocker Curt Despard (Enfield, CT) hammered out a collegiate career-best 11 kills and added three block assists, while junior outside hitter Alex Vilkhovoy (Agawam, MA) chipped in with eight kills and 12 digs.
In the loss to Elms College, sophomore setter Stephen Pendleton (Oneida, NY) registered a sensational, team-high 21-kill, 47-assist effort for SUNY-New Paltz, which committed 20 service errors in the match.
Newbury received a combined 23 kills apiece from senior outside hitters Erik Kostanski (Hampden, MA) and Jay Neveu (Riverside, RI) in its two victories on Saturday.
In the Nighthawks' win over SUNY-New Paltz, senior outside hitter Zac Falconer (Ludlow, MA) recorded a team-high 12 digs, while sophomore middle hitter Mark Thomas (Wilbraham, MA) and sophomore outside hitter Josh Aberly (Palatine, IL) combined for 27 kills.
Newbury was outstanding defensively at the net in its win over Elms College, as the Nighthawks registered 28 total blocks, including a combined 20 block assists from senior middle hitter LeRoy Cooper (Claremont, CA) and freshman setter Matthew Talamantes (Sylmar, CA).
Elms College junior libero Marc Carrasco (Safford, AZ) was solid defensively for the Blazers, as he contributed 24 digs in two matches, including a match-high 18 in the win over SUNY-New Paltz.
The Blazers return to action when they host Emmanuel College on
Tuesday, January 29 at the Maguire Center. Match time is set for
7:00 p.m.