NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Three players – senior Jake Reed (Arvada, Colo.) and juniors Sean Mullen (Longwood, Fla.) and Jon Roat (Macedon, Conn.) – recorded double figures in kills to help the 10th-ranked Wentworth Institute of Technology men's volleyball team defeat eighth-ranked Lasell, 3-1, in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference tri-match hosted by Albertus Magnus College. The Leopards defeated the host Falcons, 3-0, in the first match of the day.
No. 10 Wentworth 3, Albertus Magnus 0
Wentworth came out flying in the opening set, hitting .688 (13-2-16), en route to the 25-10 win. The Leopards raced out to leads of 3-0 and 5-2 before a service error made it 5-3. From there, the Leopards rolled off eight straight points, which included a pair of kills from sophomore Brian Drouse (Dallas, Pa.) to make it 13-3. Albertus Magnus scored two of the next three points, however a 7-1 run gave Wentworth separation from the Falcons.
The start of the second set was nearly identical to the start of the first set as an error made the score 5-3 in favor of Wentworth before a 6-0 run – capped off by a freshman Jessie Lefler (Rochester, N.Y.) kill made it 11-3. Albertus Magnus scored four of the next six points and pulled to within 13-7. Back-to-back kills extended Wentworth's lead to 15-7, however the hosts crept to within 16-10 after two Leopard errors and a kill. Wentworth closed out the set on a 9-3 run to take a 2-0 lead with a 25-13 win. The Leopards forced the Falcons to hit -.087 in the frame.
Wentworth opened the third set by scoring six of the first eight points which included two kills from freshman Scott Skarzynski (Webster, N.Y.). Albertus Mangus eventually pulled within one at 12-11, however eight straight points – including three aces from Skarzynski – made it 20-11 and the Leopards completed the sweep with a 25-14 win.
Drouse finished with 12 kills and hit .588 (12-2-17) while freshman Xhuljo Zyba (Holbrook, Mass.) had nine kills. Skarzynski had eight kills, hit .467, and served six aces. Freshmen Augusto Rodriguez-Guerrios (Guaynabo, P.R.) and Jesse Lefler (Rochester, N.Y.) had 16 and 15 assists, respectively. Freshman Josh Jackson (Massillon, Ohio) had a team-best six digs. Wentworth hit .437 as a team.
No. 10 Wentworth 3, No. 8 Lasell 1
The Leopards avenged a 3-2 loss to the Lasers from nine days ago and ran their season record against nationally ranked teams to 5-4 with the victory which puts the Black & Gold back in a tie for first place in the league standings. This match was also a matchup between two regionally ranked teams by the NCAA Division III Men's Volleyball Committee as Lasell was ranked second in the east region and Wentworth fourth in the first set of rankings.
Wentworth opened the match by taking an 8-2 lead after a block from senior Mike Hansen (Rochester, N.Y.) and would extend its lead to 17-9 after Mullen served an ace. Four straight points from Lasell cut the lead to 17-13, however Reed answered with a kill to end the run. The Lasers would pull within three at 21-18 before a service error and a Mullen kill made it 23-18. Lasell countered with two of the next three points before Mullen ended the set, 25-20, with a kill.
Lasell evened the match at a set apiece with a 25-23 win in the second set. The Lasers took an early 4-2 lead before back-to-back kills from Reed tied the score at 4-all. Lasell took a two-point lead on three occasion, including at 14-12, however three straight points gave the Black & Gold a 15-12 lead after Hansen and junior Collin Ritter (Feeding Hills, Mass.) combined for a block. Wentworth had a 19-18 lead in the set before a 5-1 Lasell run made it 23-20 in favor of the Lasers. Roat had a kill and served an ace to bring the Leopards back within one, and, after Lasell made it 24-23, Ritter made it 24-23 with a kill. However, a Lasell kill ended the set.
The Leopards jumped out to a 7-2 lead to open the third set as Roat had a pair of kills during that stretch. Lasell scored five of the next six points, making it 8-7 before a 4-1 Leopard spurt extended the lead to 12-8. Mullen and Hansen combined for a block to make it 17-12, however the Lasers would pull within a pair at 18-16. Wentworth scored three of the next four points to extend its lead to 21-17 and had a 23-20 lead after a Reed kill. Lasell cut the lead to one at 24-23 but Mullen ended the set with a kill, giving the Leopards a 2-1 lead.
Lasell scored the first three points of the fourth set and took a 10-6 lead before Wentworth rolled off five straight points and took an 11-10 lead on a kill from Reed. After the Lasers took a 15-14 lead, the Leopards got a kill and an ace from Reed and a kill from Roat to make it 17-15. Lasell scored two straight points to tie the score at 17-all, however Wentworth used a pair of blocks and a kill from Hansen and a kill and an ace from Roat to help take a 23-17 lead, a lead the Black & Gold would not relinquish in a 25-20 win.
Reed finished with 17 kills, two aces, five digs, and hit .414. Mullen had 15 kills, two blocks, three digs, and hit .367 while Roat had 14 kills, two aces, two blocks, and nine digs. Hansen had six blocks, Ritter had 47 assists and a pair of blocks, and senior Mike Rogachefsky (Rochester, N.Y.) had 17 digs. The Black & Gold hit .342 as a team which included hitting over .400 in the third and fourth sets.
Winners of five straight matches for the third time this season, Wentworth (22-6, 11-1 GNAC) is at Emmanuel on Thursday night.
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