Men's Volleyball Loses in Five Sets at Bard

ANNANDALE-ON-HUDSON, N.Y. - The Elms College Men's Volleyball team traveled to Bard College for a non-conference match on Wednesday evening.

BASICS
Score: Elms College 2 (15, 25, 25, 22, 15) | Bard College 3 (25, 21, 23, 25, 17)
Records: Blazers 11-5, 0-0 (GNAC) | Raptors 7-9, 0-1 (NEVC)

HOW IT HAPPENED

The first set would begin with Bard scoring the first point, but Elms would score four-straight points, with a kill by junior Nick Uschmann (Agawam, Mass.) and a service ace from first year Joe Culhane (Agawam, Mass.). The Raptors would go on a scoring streak of their own to take the lead. As the set would continue, the Blazers would see two kills by first year Juan Jones (Springfield, Mass.), a pair of Culhane kills, Uschmann would add two kills, and a kill from first Xavier Lozado (Springfield, Mass.), along with a block by senior Rafa Artero (Madrid, Spain) and Lozado. Unfortunately, Bard would take the first set 25-25.

The second set would see the Raptors earn the early lead, but Elms would capitalize on errors committed by their opposition, two kills by junior John Bellafronte (Enfield, Conn.), Uschmann recording a kill and a service ace, and a kill and a block from Jones. Then as the set neared its end, Artero and Uschmann would make a block, Uschmann added a kill and a service ace, and kills by Bellafronte, Lozado, and Culhane to win the set 25-21.

The third set would start with an early tug of war between the two non-conference foes, with Blazers recording a kill from Culhane and a Lozado service ace, followed by a kill by Uschmann. As the set would continue, Jones, Culhane, and Uschmann each added two kills. The two interstate opponents would continue to battle for lead, with Elms seeing Jones make a kill, followed by two kills by Ushmann, a block from Uschmann and Jones, and two Bellafronte kills to win their second-straight set, 25-23. 

The fourth set would kick off with Bard earning another early lead, but the Blazers would see a combined six kills by Culhane, Artero, Uschmann, Bellafronte, and Jones to bring the score to within a point. As the set would move forward, the Raptors would continue to keep the momentum in their favor, but Elms would continue to keep themselves within arms reach, with kills by Jones, Culhane, Artero, and Uschmann. Then as the set neared its end, the Blazers would record four-straight points, seeing Uschmann, sophomore Hunter Ladouceur (Wilbraham, Mass.), Bellafronte, and Culhane each record kills, but Bard would win their second set, 25-22, and tie the match two sets to two.

The fifth and final set would once again start with the Raptors earning the early advantage, but the Elms defense would pause their efforts momentarily following two big blocks by the pairs of Artero-Uschmann and Jones-Ladouceur. As the set moved along, the Blazers would gain some momentum following a set of kills by Artero and Uschmann to bring the score to within a point, and would then take their first lead of the set after Culhane would make three-straight kills, followed by a kill from Uschmann and a block by Artero. Unfortunately, Bard would score four of the next five points scored to win the set 17-15 and defeat Elms three sets to two.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Ladouceur - 43 assists, 12 digs, a kill, and a block assist.

• Bousquet - 20 digs.

• Uschmann - 16 kills, 11 digs, three block assists, and two service aces.

• Culhane - 12 kills, seven digs, and a service ace.

• Bellafronte - 11 digs, seven kills, and two assists.

• Jones - eight kills

• Artero - four kills, four blocks, and an assist.

• Lozado - two kills, two digs, a service ace, and a block assist.

• Sánchez - a dig and an assist.

• Centeno Pagan - a dig.

UP NEXT: The Elms Men's Volleyball team will travel to Weston, Mass. for their conference opener on Friday, February 27th against Regis College at 5 pm.

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