Men's Volleyball Splits Conference Tri-Match at Wentworth

BOSTON, Mass. - The Elms College Men's Volleyball team traveled to No. 10 Wentworth Institute of Technology for a conference tri-match against the Leopards and Dean College on Saturday afternoon.

BASICS
Match 1
Score: Elms College 3 (25, 23, 25, 25) | Dean College 1 (19, 25, 17, 17)
Records: Blazers 4-13, 1-2 (GNAC) | Bulldogs 2-14, 0-5 (GNAC)

Match 2
Score: Elms College 0 (9, 13, 17) | No. 10 Wentworth Institute of Technology 3 (25, 25, 25)
Records: Blazers 4-14, 1-3 (GNAC) | Leopards 17-4, 8-0 (GNAC)

HOW IT HAPPENED
Match 1
The opening set would begin with Dean recording the first point, but the Elms offense would quickly take over, outscoring the Bulldogs 7-2 in the first nine frames of play, with kills sophomores Nick Uschmann (Agawam, Mass.) and John Bellafronte (Enfield, Conn.), junior Rafa Artero (Madrid, Spain), and first year Yazhua Marin Valentin (Sringfield, Mass.), along with two service aces from Al Sánchez (Guayama, P.R.) and Artero. Dean would record a couple of points, but the Blazers would continue to add to their lead, with the help from kills by Uschmann, Sánchez, Bellafronte, Artero, and Marin Valentin, along with service ace from Marin Valentin and graduate student Tahir Busaidy (Houston, Texas), and blocks by first year Hunter Ladouceur (Wilbraham, Mass.) and Bellafronte, Elms would win the first set 25-19.

The second set would see the Blazers with a strong start, scoring an early 9-5 lead, after a kill by Artero, a service ace and a kill from Ladoucuer, Uschmann recording two kills and a block, and Marin Valentin adding a kill, along with multiple errors by Dean. But as the set carried on, the Bulldogs would respond quickly to the Elms offense. After the Blazers scored five points, Dean would score five points of their own. Even though Elms would get kills from Uschmann, Ladouceur, Marin Valentin, and Artero, along with a service ace by Artero, the conference foes would battle for points, until the Bulldogs would steal the second set 25-23.

The third set would once again see the Blazers with the early advantage, with kills by Artero and Uschmann, but Dean would take the lead 5-4. Fortunately following a kill by Bellafronte, the Elms offense would rally back to take the lead and not give it up until the very end of the set, winning their second set 25-17. During the third set, the Blazers would see Bellafronte record five kills and three service aces, Uschmann add three kills and a service ace, Artero would make two kills, and Marin Valentin would add a service ace and a kill.

The fourth and final set would begin with another battle between the conference foes for the early lead, with the Bulldogs scoring the first two points, but after a kill by Uschmann and a pair of service aces from Ladouceur, would give a 4-2 lead to Elms. The Blazers offense would continue to move forward as Uschmann added six kills, a service ace, and a block, Bellafronte scoring on a service ace and a block, Artero adding two kills and two blocks, Ladouceur recording a kill and a block, and one last kill from Marin Valentin, to win the set 25-17, and secure the 3-1 conference victory.

Match 2

The opening set would begin with the two two conference foes trading points early, after a service ace by Bellafronte for the first point of the match and a kill by Ladoucer, to set up an early 3-3 tie. Wentworth would then begin a nine-point scoring streak before Uschmann would record two kills, but the Leopards would continue to add to their large lead. Elms would see additional kills by senior Joshua Fernandez Garcia (Canovanas, P.R.), Uschmann, and Bellafronte, but the nationally ranked Wentworth offense would control the set 25-9.

The second set would once again see Bellafronte record the opening point for the Blazers after making a kill, but the Leopards would continue to control their efforts to control the narrative of the set. But in their way was a strong effort by Elms, after kills by Bellafronte, Artero, Uschmann, the Blazers would bring the score to 8-9. As the set moved along, the WIT offense would continue to capitalize on both sides of the ball, offensively and defensively. Uschmann, Sánchez, and Bellafronte would each record a kill, but the second set would belong to Wentworth, 25-13.

The third and final set of the afternoon would see the Leopards score the opening two points, but Uschmann and Bellafronte would score three kills to bring the score to 3-5. The two conference foes would continue their battle, as Sánchez, Uschmann, and Bellafronte would each add kills, along with a block by Areto and Bellafronte. Unfortunately, Wentworth would walk away with the set, 25-17, and the 3-0 conference victory over Elms.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Uschmann would make 31 kills, 11 digs, two service aces, two blocks, and an assist.

• Ladouceur made 59 assists, seven digs, five kills, three service aces, three block assists.

• Bellafronte created 15 kills, five service aces, five digs, and two blocks.

• Sánchez added 13 digs, five kills, a service ace, and an assist.

• Artero generated 11 kills, three block assists, two service aces, and two digs.

• Fernandez Garcia would make a kill and an assist.

• Marin Valentin would create six kills, three digs, two service aces, and an assist.

• Busaidy would record a service ace.

UP NEXT: The Elms Men's Volleyball team will host Rivier University on Tuesday, March 18th in a conference match at 7 pm at Picknelly Arena.

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