BOSTON, Mass. – Paced by sophomore Sean Mullen's (Longwood, Fla.) 13 kills and three aces, the Wentworth Institute of Technology men's volleyball team ran its win streak to three matches as the Leopards defeated Emerson, 3-0, in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference contest played at Tansey Gymnasium. The victory was the 100th overall and 50th in conference play for fifth-year head coach Evin Giglio.
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| Giglio is 100-52 in his five seasons on the Leopard bench, including 50-19 in league play |
With the win the Leopards improve to 17-8 overall and 9-2 in GNAC play while the Lions fall to-9-12 (5-6).
Emerson took a quick 3-0 lead thanks in part to a pair of kills from freshman Win Kittivatcharapong (Bangkok, Thiland). Wentworth responded with an 8-2 run and took an 8-5 lead on the second of two consecutive service aces from junior Jake Reed (Arvada, Colo.). The Leopards saw their lead swell to 17-11 on a Reed kill before kills from Kittivatcharapong and sophomore Nick Rusk (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) made it 17-13. Sophomore Jon Roat (Macedon, N.Y.) ended the spurt with a kill, however the Lions got a kill from sophomore Stig Regan (Kailua, Hawaii) and two Kittivatcharapong aces made it 18-16. Wentworth took a 20-17 lead on a service error before Emerson rolled off three straight points to tie the set at 20-all.
After a service error gave the Leopards a 21-20 lead, Emerson scored two straight and took a 22-21 lead. A Mullen kill tied it at 22-all and he then served an ace to give the hosts a 23-22 lead. An attack error evened the score at 23-all and a freshman Mark Piorkowski (Montclair, N.J.) kill gave Emerson set point at 24-23. Reed tied the score at 24-all and the score would be tied at 25, 26, and 27-all before an attack error would give Wentworth a 28-27 lead. A second consecutive attack error gave the hosts a 29-27 win in the first set. Mullen had five kills in the opening set while Kittivatcharapong and senior Jackson Wiley (Los Angeles, Calif.) had five apiece for the visitors.
Kittivatcharapong opened the second set with a kill however, Wentworth responded with an 8-1 run and took an 8-2 lead on a Mullen kill. A Regan kill and a bad set cut the lead to 8-4 before three straight points would give the Leopards an 11-4 lead. Wentworth increased its lead to 15-6 with three quick points before Emerson scored three of the next four points to make it 16-9 on a Leopard attack error. Three straight points increased the Black & Gold's lead to 10 (19-9) and Wentworth would capture the second set with a 25-13 win. Wentworth hit .609 in the set, making just one attack error on 23 swings. Mullen paced the offense with five kills on seven swings without an error. Piokowski led Emerson with three kills.
Emerson jumped out to a 6-4 lead early in the set before Mullen had a kill and an ace, Reed had a kill and sophomore Kevin McPeek and junior Mike Hansen (Rochester, N.Y.) combined for a block to give the Leopards an 8-6 lead and ignite an 8-0 run to give Wentworth a 12-6 lead. The Leopards' lead increased to 18-10 on a Roat kill and 20-11 on a Mullen kill. Emerson cut the lead to 20-14 but Mullen responded with a kill to make it 21-14 and the Leopards closed out the match with a 25-16 win. Reed had five kills and two blocks in the set for the Leopards while Regan had three kills for Emerson.
Roat added nine kills and an ace while Reed had nine kills, four aces, and four blocks in the win. Junior Alex Potts (Niverville, N.Y.) had six kills on 12 swings without an error and added two blocks and sophomore Kevin McPeek (Bethlehem, Pa.) had 31 assists. McPeek, Roat, and Mullen each had eight digs.
Piorkowski led the ions with eight kills while Kittivatcharapong and Wiley had seven kills each. Kittivatcharapong also served a pair of aces. Rusk had 26 helpers and senior Jared Gross (Wexford, Pa.) had 11 digs.
The program's winningest coach, Giglio sports a 100-52 (.658) overall record and the 2014 GNAC Coach of the Year is 50-19 (.725) in conference play during his tenure with the Black & Gold.
Prior to the match, seniors Ryan Motyl (Westford, Mass.) and Zach Newhouse (Lancaster, Calif.) were honored as a part of senior day festivities.
Wentworth concludes the regular season with three straight road matches, beginning at Albertus Magnus on Tuesday at 7:00. Emerson is also in action on Tuesday as the Lions host Lasell at 7:00.