Men's Volleyball Gets Back on the Right Track with a 3-1 Conference Victory Over Dean College

FRANKLIN, Mass. - The Elms College Men's Volleyball team traveled to Dean College for a conference match on Saturday afternoon.

BASICS
Score: Elms College 3 (25, 25, 23, 25) | Dean College 0 (22, 18, 25, 22)
Records: Blazers 14-12, 2-3 (GNAC) | Bulldogs 6-17, 0-6 (GNAC)

HOW IT HAPPENED

The first set would begin with Dean scoring the first four points of the match, but Elms would quickly capitalize on attack errors committed by the Bulldogs and a kill from junior Nick Uschmann (Agawam, Mass.). As the opening set would continue, the two conference foes would battle for the lead, as the Blazers would see a block by senior Rafa Artero (Madrid, Spain), a pair of kills from Uschmann, and a kill recorded by first year Joe Culhane (Agawam, Mass.). Then following a Uschmann-service ace and a second kill from Culhane, Elms would earn a much larger lead, with additional assistance from kills by first year David Dzhenzherukha (Agawam, Mass.), Culhane, and junior John Bellafronte (Enfield, Conn.), along with a service ace from Artero, to take the first set from Dean, 25-22.

The second set would see the Bulldogs take the early advantage once again, but the Blazers would see three kills from first year John Centeno Pagan (Manatí, P.R.) and Uschmann to begin a short-lived rally between the two intrastate opponents, until the tides would change in favor of Elms. Following a kill by Artero, the Blazers would score eight-straight points, seeing Uschmann and Artero each add a pair of kills, and Culhane recording a block and a kill. Dean would try to narrow the deficit, but the Elms offense would continue to keep the set in their favor, as Uschmann would make two kills, a two kills and a service ace from Bellafronte, and three final kills by Centeno Pagan, Artero, and Culhane to win the set 25-18, and to take a two set lead.

The third set would start by Artero recording a kill for the first point of the set, followed by a kill from Culhane, as the two conference rivals began an early battle for the lead, which would result in favor of the Bulldogs. The Blazers would try to keep themselves within an arms length of Dean, with a block by Bellafronte and Dzhenzherukha, along with a combined 13 kills from Dzhenzherukha, Centeno Pagan, Culhane, Artero, Uschmann, and Bellafronte. Unfortunately, Elms would not be able to secure the sweep victory, and the Bulldogs would win the set 25-23, and bring the match score to two sets to one.

The fourth and final set would begin with Dean taking the early advantage once again, but the Blazers would add four kills by Uschmann, Culhane, and Centeno Pagan to tie the set 9-9. Then the Elms offense would regain momentum of the set, following a Culhane block and a kill from Uschmann, and the Blazers would take a six-point lead, with help from two kills by Culhane, Uschmann, Centeno Pagan, and Bellanfronte each recording a kill, and a block by Bellafronte and Dzhenzherukha. The Bulldogs would try to swing the momentum back in their favor late in the set, but additional kills by Centeno Pagan and Uschmann would keep Elms ahead, as they would win the set 25-22, and the conference match three sets to one.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Ladouceur: 30 assists and six digs.

• Uschmann: 18 kills, seven digs, and a service ace.

• Dzhenzherukha: 15 assists, two kills, two block assists, and a dig.

• Bosuquet: 14 digs and three assists.

• Culhane: 12 kills and eight digs.

• Centeno Pagan: eight kills, seven digs, two blocks, and an assist.

• Artero: six kills, five digs, a service ace, and a block.

• Bellafronte: five kills, four digs, two block assists, a service ace, and an assist.

UP NEXT: The Elms Men's Volleyball team will travel to Boston, Mass. to face off against Emerson College in a conference match on Tuesday, March 31st at 7 pm.

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