Men's Volleyball Dethrones King's College for Sixth-Straight Win

CHICOPEE, Mass. - The Elms College Men's Volleyball team hosted King's College, Penn. for a non-conference match on Friday evening at Picknelly Arena.

BASICS
Score: Elms College 3 (25, 23, 25, 30) | King's College, Penn. 1 (18, 25, 15, 28)
Records: Blazers 11-2, 0-0 (GNAC) | Monarchs 3-6, 0-0 (MAC)

HOW IT HAPPENED

The first set would start with Elms earning an early 5-1 lead following kills by junior Nick Uschmann (Agawam, Mass.) and senior Rafa Artero (Madrid, Spain), along with back-to-back service aces from first year Xavier Lozado (Springfield, Mass.). King's would rally themselves to within a point of tying the score, but not before a kill by junior John Bellafronte (Enfield, Conn.). The Blazers would then extend their lead with kills from Bellafronte and Uschmann, along with a block by first year Juan Jones (Springfield, Mass.) and an Uschmann service ace. As the set would continue, the Monarchs would continue to try their best efforts to keep themselves within gaining the lead, but the Elms offense would control the scoreboard, with first year Xavier Lozado (Springfield, Mass.) and Uschmann would record two kills and Bellafronte and Jones would add three kills, along with blocks by Bellafronte and Jones, to win the opening set 25-18.

The second set would begin by Artero and Bellafronte recording a combined three kills. The two non-conference opponents would then battle for the early lead, seeing Jones, Bellafronte, Lozado, and Uschmann would record eight kills, along with a service ace from Lozado, to earn a 15-7 lead. Then as it appeared the set may go in the Blazers favor, with Jones, Bellafronte, and Uschmann each adding a kill and a block by Artero and sophomore Hunter Ladouceur (Wilbraham, Mass.), the King's offense would rally themselves to gain the lead and win the second set 25-23.

The third set would see the Monarchs earn the first point of the set, but Elms would see two kills from Uschmann and a Uschmann-Artero block to earn the first lead. As the set would continue, the two opposing teams would then trade possession, with the Blazers earning five kills by Bellafronte, first year Joe Culhane (Agawam, Mass.), and Artero, until Elms would take a significant lead when the Blazers would take an 18-13 lead, with the assistance from kills by Uschmann, Jones, and Culhane. As the set neared its end, King's would look for an opportunity, but Elms would secure the set, with the help from kills by Bellafronte, Culhane, and Artero, along with a Ladouceur service ace, by a score of 25-15.

The fourth and final set would once again see the two opponents challenge each other with the early lead, with the Blazers earning kills by Ladouceur, Artero, Bellafronte, and Uschmann. The Monarchs would answer back by taking a short-lived lead, with Bellafronte, Culhane, and Jones each adding kills, and a block from Uschmann. As King's looked to take away the set from the home team, Elms would see Artero, first year David Dzhenzherukha (Agawam, Mass.), and Culhane each add kills, and Culhane earned a service ace, to help them rally to take back a temporary lead. As the fourth set neared its end, Culhane recorded three kills, Bellafronte made two kills, a kill by Jones and Uschmann, along with two blocks by Artero, Culhane, and Uschmann to win the set 30-28, and win their sixth-straight match three sets to one.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Ladouceur - 55 assists, seven digs, two kills, and a block assist.

• Bousquet - 30 digs and two assists.

• Bellafronte - 21 kills, nine digs, two assists, and a block assist.

• Uschmann - 12 kills, four blocks, four digs, and a service ace.

• Culhane - eight kills, six digs, two service aces, and a block assist.

• Jones - eight kills and two blocks.

• Artero - seven kills, block assists, and three digs.

• Lozado - four kills, four service aces, and four digs.

• Sánchez - a dig and an assist.

• Dzhenzherukha - a kill.

UP NEXT: The Elms Men's Volleyball team will travel to Beverly, Mass. for a non-conference match on Tuesday, February 17th against RV Endicott College at 6 pm.

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