Marcy, N.Y. – The third-ranked Wentworth Institute of Technology men's volleyball team split a pair of matches at their second day of the SUNY Poly Wildcat Invitational tournament. In non-conference play, the Leopards fell to eighth-ranked Juniata 3-1 before topping SUNY Poly 3-1.

 
MATCH ONE: #8 JUNIATA 3, #3 WENTWORTH 1

RECORDS

• #3 Wentworth: 1-3
• #8 Juniata: 3-0

 
WENTWORTH STAT LEADERS:

• Kills – Hunter Oshman, 11; Sam Etter, 8; Tyler Jack, Nicolai Bell, 6
• Assists – Brayden Green, 27; Josh Milke, 4
• Digs – Oshman, 9; Jack, 6; Mason Andrade, 4
• Aces – Oshman, 2

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• Juniata began the first set with a 1-0 lead that was matched with a kill by senior Hunter Oshman (Pennington, N.J.). After the Eagles stretched their lead to 6-4, the Leopards got a kill from sophomore Sam Etter (Massillon, Ohio) to cut the deficit to one at 6-5. Down 8-6, the Leopards received consecutive kills from Oshman, freshman Nicolai Bell (Moraga, Calif.), and senior Alex McLane (Columbus, Ohio) to take a 9-8 lead. Juniata separated themselves with a 14-11 lead and later a 17-13 lead. Down 19-17, the Leopards received another kill from Bell to cut the deficit to one. However, in a back-and-forth scoring affair to end the set, the Eagles held on for a 25-23 set win and a 1-0 match lead.
• The Leopards began the second set down 3-1 but got a kill from Oshman to cut the deficit to 3-2. Down 4-2 a point later, the Leopards got a kill from freshman Matthew Zegowitz (Westford, Mass.) to make the score 4-3. The Eagles separated themselves with a 12-6 lead. The Leopards scored a point on a kill from junior Jacob Waga (East Northport, N.Y.) to make the score 12-7. Down 13-9, Wentworth got another kill from Oshman to make the score 13-10. With the Leopards down by five at 17-12, a kill from junior Tyler Jack (San Diego, Calif.) made a 17-13 score. Juniata rattled off eight of the next 12 points to take a 25-17 set win and a 2-0 match lead.
• Wentworth started the third set ahead 2-1 with kills courtesy of Oshman and Etter. Errors and a kill by Zegowitz helped the Black & Gold continue building their lead, with kills from Jack and Etter helping stabilize a three-point lead at 8-5. Errors and a kill by Oshman helped the Leopards continue their lead to a 14-10 score. The Eagles clawed back to take a 19-18 lead. The two teams traded points to end the tight set until a kill by Oshman secured a 25-21 set win for the Leopards, cutting the match deficit to one at 2-1.
• After a 3-3 tie begun the fourth set, the Eagles gave themselves an 8-4 lead. Errors helped the Leopards keep the difference to four points while the Eagles carried the score to a 14-7 lead on two service aces and a handful of kills. Down 17-11, the Leopards got a kill from Etter to bring them within five at 17-12. The Eagles continued to extend their lead to a 24-17 score. The Leopards, with the help of a kill by Bell, closed the gap to a 24-20 score, but the Eagles notched the final set 25-20, winning them the match in four-set fashion.

THE SERIES:

• Today marked the fourth time the two teams have met. Juniata leads, 3-1.

MATCH TWO: #3 WENTWORTH 3, SUNY POLY 1

RECORDS

• #3 Wentworth: 2-3
• SUNY Poly: 1-3

 
WENTWORTH STAT LEADERS:

• Kills – Sam Etter, 8; Hunter Oshman, 7; Nicolai Bell, 6
• Assists – Brayden Green, 18; Anthony Krzykowski, 15
• Digs – Mason Andrade, 7; Etter, 6
• Aces – Bell, 2

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• Wentworth got off to an early 6-2 lead with kills from Oshman (2) and McLane. They pushed their lead to 11-6 due to Wildcat errors and a kill from Etter. A kill by Jack continued to carry their lead to 16-11. The Leopards slipped their lead to a 19-19 tie. Up 24-21 with a Jack kill, the Wildcats came back to tie at 24-24, 25-25, and 26-26. After a kill by Oshman put the Black & Gold ahead by one, the Leopards committed one-too many errors, giving the Wildcats a 29-27 first-set win.
• The Leopards blazed into a 4-0 lead to start the second set, topped with a kill by Etter. They pushed their lead to 5-2 with a kill from Bell. Eventually pushing their lead to 12-5, the Leopards extended it to seven with a kill from Zegowitz. The Wildcats came back a flurry of points, however, the Leopards received kills from McLane, Oshman, Etter, and Bell en route to a 25-16 set win, tying the match at 1 apiece.
• Two kills from Bell ignited the Leopards to get out to a 6-2 lead to start the third set. Errors helped them continue their lead to 9-4. Ahead 11-7, a kill from Waga helped the Leopards keep their lead at five, 12-7. Errors and a kill from McLane had the Leopards ahead by ten in a 20-10 score. Kills by Etter (2) and Waga solidified a Leopards set win by a 25-14 score, giving them a 2-1 advantage.
• The fourth set began in a 1-1 draw until a kill by Oshman put the Leopards ahead 2-1. Wentworth continued to build on their lead slowly, working up to an 8-4 score with a kill by Waga. Another kill by Waga later gave the Leopards a 10-6 lead. Wentworth began pulling away due to Wildcat errors, resulting in a 19-9 score. Sophomore Alek Reymond (Chittenango, N.Y.) notched a kill to extend the Leopards lead to 20-9. A kill by sophomore Dave Arellanes (North Aurora, Ill.) put the Black & Gold ahead 22-10. A few errors for the Wildcats gave the Leopards a 25-10 win, securing them a 3-1 match victory.

THE SERIES:

• Wentworth is undefeated all-time against the Wildcats (11-0).

NEXT UP:

• The Leopards visit Regis for a GNAC matchup Wednesday (7:00 p.m.).

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