NEW HAVEN, Conn. - Ross Burdett (Needham, Mass.) recorded 14 kills and nine digs, while junior Brian Mann (East Freetown, Mass.) added 12 kills and seven blocks as the Wentworth Institute of Technology men's volleyball team outlasted Albertus Magnus, 3-2 (18-25, 25-23, 25-19, 22-25, 15-11) in Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) play on Tuesday night.
With the win, the Leopards improve to 13-6 overall and 4-1 in league action. The 13 wins matches the team's total win output from the 2012 campaign. The Falcons fall to 7-8 on the year and 0-6 in league action.
Glenn Johnson (Newington, Conn.) registered 20 kills and 18 digs for the Falcons. Johnson's 20-kill effort marks his second-best outing of the season, while he added two service aces as well.
Sophomore Chase Brinton (Orange, Conn.) added 18 kills in 44 tries along with six digs, while Douglas DeSousa (Danbury, Conn.) contributed with nine digs, 19 assists and six kills. Mike Clark added 16 digs on the night as well.
Carlos Torres (Adjuntas, Puerto Rico) dished out 34 assists, while adding nine digs and three total blocks.
The Falcons cruised to a first-set victory, finishing the set with a 25-18 win led by a 17 total kills in 30 attempts for a .367 team percentage. Wentworth bounced back in the second set, taking a 25-23 win as there were seven tied scores and four lead changes in the frame.
The Falcons jumped out to an 8-4 lead before the Leopards used a 7-1 run to take an 11-9 lead capped by a block from Tyler Moriarty (Wilbraham, Mass.) and Mann. Back-to-back service errors by Wentworth cut the Leopards lead to one at 20-19 before pushing out to a 23-19 advantage. After an Albertus timeout, the Falcons recorded four points in the following five plays but a kill by Mann secured the Leopards 25-23 victory.
Wentworth opened the third set with a 9-2 run out of the gates before extending their lead to 13-5 but the Leopards went on to take the set by a score of 25-19.
The Falcons bounced back in the fourth set to take a close 25-22 victory led by seven kills from Johnson.
In the final set, the Falcons recorded just six kills and recorded seven hitting errors, while the Leopards registered five kills and no errors in 15 attempts. Wentworth went on to take an 8-3 lead before securing the match with a 15-11 win.
Sophomore Rami Akouri (Fall River, Mass.) and junior Mike Buonincontra (Shelton, Conn.) had eight kills apiece. Akouri also added 11 digs and four blocks. Moriarty finished with 46 assists, two service aces and 11 digs.
Albertus will travel to Regis College (Mass.) on Wednesday for a 7:00 p.m. non-conference match-up. Wentworth is at Mount Ida on Saturday for a GNAC tri-match with the Mustangs and these same Falcons.
(Recap Courtesy of Albertus Magnus Sports Information)
