Men's Volleyball Completes Double Sweep in Home Tri-Match against Sarah Lawrence and Dean

CHICOPEE, Mass. - The Elms College Men's Volleyball team hosted Sarah Lawrence College and Dean College for a non-conference tri-match on Saturday at Picknelly Arena.

BASICS
Match 1
Score: Elms College 3 (25, 25, 25) | Sarah Lawrence College 0 (14, 14, 8)
Records: Blazers 7-2, 0-0 (GNAC) | Gryphons 1-3, 0-0 (SKYLINE)

Match 2
Score: Elms College 3 (25, 25, 25) | Dean College 0 (20, 14, 17)
Records: Blazers 8-2, 0-0 (GNAC) | Bulldogs 2-3, 0-0 (GNAC)

HOW IT HAPPENED
Match 1
The first set would see Sarah Lawrence score the first point, but Elms would gain the early momentum, scoring seven-straight points, with junior Nick Uschmann (Agawam, Mass.) and first year Joe Culhane (Agawam, Mass.) making three kills, junior John Bellafronte (Enfield, Conn.) earning back-to-back service aces, and a block by Uschmann and senior Rafa Artero (Madrid, Spain). The Gryphons would then go on a scoring spree of their own, adding six points to their side of the scoreboard, but the Blazers would continue to keep their advantage following four kills by Bellafronte and a second block from Artero and Uschmann. But as the set neared its end, SLC would continue their efforts to create some positive momentum, but the Elms offense would continue to put away their opponents, as Artero would add a service ace, followed by kills from first year Juan Jones (Springfield, Mass.) and sophomore Hunter Ladouceur (Wilbraham, Mass.) to win the opening set 25-14.

The second set would begin with the two non-conference opponents beginning with a battle for the early lead, as the Blazers would earn kills from Artero and Culhane, which would lead to Elms scoring four-straight points, with the assistance of kills by Uschmann and Artero and a Jones block. The Gryphons would add a point, but the Blazers would continue to control the narrative of the set, with Jones, Bellafronte, Ladouceur, and Culhane each adding a kill, along with a block by Jones and Ladouceur. As the set would continue, the Elms offense would continue to keep themselves ahead, with the help of three kills and two service aces by first year Xavier Lozado (Springfield, Mass.), a service ace and a kill from Jones, and kills by Uschmann, Culhane, and first year John Centeno Pagan (Manatí, P.R.) to win their second-straight set 25-14.

The third and final set would see Sarah Lawrence take the first lead, 2-1, but the Blazers would continue to control the momentum from the previous two sets with the assistance of a combined five kills from Uschmann, Culhane, and Jones. The two foes would continue to go back and forth as the Elms offense would look to extend their lead after additional kills by Culhane, Jones, Uschmann, and first year Chris Bousquet (Springfield, Mass.), along with a Ladouceur service ace, prior to a Gryphons timeout. Following the timeout break, the Blazers would continue to handle the set from both ends of the ball, with a combined three kills from Uschmann, Culhane, and Lozado, a service ace by Bellafronte, and four blocks from Artero, Uschmann, and Culhane to win the set, 25-8, and would secure the 3-0 sweep victory.

Match 2
The first set would begin with Elms earning the first advantage in the non-conference match following two kills from Culhane and a block by Uschmann and Artero. Dean would tally two points to their score, but the Blazers would continue to keep the score in their favor, as they would record six kills from Uschmann, Jones, Bellafronte, Bousquet, and Artero, along with a Culhane service ace. But as the set looked to be near its end, the Bulldogs would rally back and bring the score within two points. Luckily for the home side, Elms would be able to close out the opening set 25-20, with the help from kills by Bellafronte, Jones, Culhane, and Artero, and three blocks from Jones, Bellafronte, Ladouceur, Artero, and Uschmann.

The second set would start with the two conference foes continuing their battle, as the Blazers would benefit from kills by Culhane, Bellafronte, Uschmann, and Ladouceur. As the set would continue, Elms would keep the momentum in their favor, as Jones would add three kills and two blocks, a service ace, a block, and two kills from Culhane, Ladouceur making a pair of blocks, a block from Artero, a kill by Bellafronte, and two final Uschmann kills to win the second set, 25-14.

The third and final set would see Dean score the opening two points, but the Blazers would quickly regain the lead, with the assistance from back-to-back kills from Bellafronte and Uschmann, along with a block by Artero and Bellafronte. Following additional kills by Uschmann and Jones, the Bulldogs would battle their way to bring the score to within a point, but the Elms offense would continue to regain momentum after recording three-straight points off kills by Ladouceur and Jones and a service ace from Culhane. As the set neared its end, Dean would continue their efforts to extend the match to a fourth set, but the Blazers would continue to foil their plans, with the assistance of five kills from Artero, Uschmann, Culhane Ladouceur, and Jones, a service ace by Centeno Pagan, and a block from Jones and Ladouceur, to win the set, 25-17, and to complete their second sweep victory of the day.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Ladouceur - 61 assists, ten digs, five kills, five blocks, and a service ace.

• Bousquet - 33 digs, ten assists, and two kills.

• Culhane - 18 kills, ten digs, three service aces, and two block assists.

• Uschmann - 16 kills, five block assists, and five digs.

• Jones - 15 kills, six blocks, two digs, and a service ace.

• Bellafronte - 12 kills, 11 digs, three service aces, three blocks, and two assists.

• Artero - ten blocks, six kills, five digs, and a service ace.

• Lozado - four kills and two service aces.

• Centeno Pagan - three digs, a kill, a service ace, and an assist.

• Sañchez - two digs.

UP NEXT: The Elms Men's Volleyball team will return to Picknelly Arena for a non-conference match against Fisher College on Friday, February 6th at 7 pm.

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