PROVIDENCE, R.I. – The Wentworth Institute of Technology men's volleyball team split a pair of matches at the Johnson & Wales University Invitational on Friday. The Leopards defeated Johnson & Wales, 3-0, before falling to New Jersey City, 3-2.
Junior Ross Burdett (Needham, Mass.) paced the Leopards against the Wildcats as he had 12 kills, while sophomore Rami Akouri (Fall River, Mass.) had 10 kills. Wentworth took the first game, 25-21, before rallying to take the second game, 28-26, in a game that saw Wentworth stave off game point twice. In the third game, the Black & Gold hit a blistering .720 to take a 25-19 win and complete the sweep.
Junior Brian Mann (East Freetown, Mass.) had eight kills and a pair of blocks, junior Mike Buonincontra (Shelton, Conn.) had nine kills, seven digs, and two blocks, and sophomore Sean Donahue (Lincoln, R.I.) had seven kills and two blocks. Senior Tyler Moriarty (Wilbraham, Mass.) had 41 assists, two aces, and a match-high 10 digs to help pace Wentworth's cause.
The Leopards defeated the Gothic Knights, 25-18, in the first game of the day's second match, however, New Jersey City took a 2-1 lead after winning the second and third games, 25-23 and 25-19, respectively. In the third game NJCU hit .419 as a team.
Wentworth staved off the loss with a 25-23 win in the fourth game, forcing a fifth and deciding game, but found themselves trailing 5-0 to start the game. However, eight straight Leopard points gave the Black & Gold an 8-5 lead at the switch.
New Jersey City scored five of the next six points to lead, 10-9, and Wentworth could get no closer, falling by a 15-12 score.
Four players tallied double digits in kills as Mann – who also had six blocks – led the way with 12, followed by Buonincontra, Akouri, and Burdett, who had 11 apiece. Freshman Zach Newhouse (Lancaster, Calif.) had 14 digs, Burdett had two aces, and Buonincontra added 10 digs. Moriarty, who is now 12 assists shy of 3,000 for his career, had 50 assists.
Wentworth (10-6) continues tournament play on Saturday, facing York (N.Y.) and Daniel Webster.
New Jersey City
Johnson & Wales