BOSTON, Mass. – Freshmen Jake Reed (Arvada, Colo.) and Sam Pisker (Mullica Hill, N.J.) combined for 21 kills and junior Sean Donahue (Lincoln, R.I.) had seven kills and hit .700 as the Wentworth Institute of Technology men's volleyball team swept visiting Southern Vermont 3-0 (25-15, 25-15, 25-17) in non-conference action Saturday at Tansey Gymnasium.
With the win, the Leopards improve to 7-0 on the season, extending the best start in program history, while the Mountaineers see their two-match win streak come to an end and even their record at 4-4.
The opening set began with the two teams trading points before a Donahue block gave the Leopards a 7-6 lead. The stalemate would continue throughout the early stages of the set, with ties at seven, eight and nine. Freshman Collin Ritter (Feeding Hills, Mass.) would serve an ace, which was followed by a Pisker kill to take a 12-10 lead. Donahue's second block of the frame gave the Leopards a 17-12 lead in the middle of a 5-0 run, which forced a Southern Vermont timeout. The run would continue after the timeout as Wentworth rattled off another four points, capped by a Ross Burdett (Needham, Mass.) kill to give the Black & Gold a 21-12 lead. Freshman Alex Potts (Niverville, N.Y.) finished the set with a block and Wentworth took the opening frame 25-15.
Wentworth would jump out to an early 4-2 lead in the second set behind solid passing and defense. Pisker's serving and two Burdett kills would then help the Leopard's extend their lead to 9-4. Donahue and Pisker would then hit back-to-back kills to give Wentworth an eight point lead at 14-6. Southern Vermont junior Joey Dighton (Riverside, Calif.) would block a Wentworth attempt to get the Mountaineers back within five at 15-10, however Reed responded with a kill to get the Leopards back on the board at 16-10. Wentworth would finish the match outscoring the visitors, 9-5, to take the second set 25-15.
In the third set the Leopards would once again jump out to a lead, taking an early, 5-1 advantage. After two Mountaineer unforced errors, Pisker's kill gave Wentworth a three point lead at 6-3. Dighton's ace however would get the Mountaineers within one at 6-5, but another Pisker kill gave Wentworth a 7-5 lead. Wentworth would eventually go on a 7-2 run highlighted by a Reed kill to give the hosts a 14-7 lead and forced a Mountaineer timeout. Southern Vermont came out of the timeout to score two straight points and pull within five at 14-9, but the scored four of the next five points and took an 18-10 lead. A junior Scott Fitzgerald (Fort Edward, N.Y.) kill would get Southern Vermont back within six at 21-15 but Donahue's presence in the middle was too much and his kill gave Wentworth a 22-15 lead. Mike Hansen (Rochester, N.Y.) ended the match with a kill to give the Leopards the 25-17 victory.
Pisker had 11 kills and hit .562 for the match while Reed had 10 kills and senior Ross Burdett (Needham, Mass.) added six. In addition to his seven kills, Donahue had four blocks and three aces. Senior Mike Buonincontra (Shelton, Conn.) had 10 digs, while freshman Collin Ritter (Feeding Hills, Mass.) had 36 assists, two aces, and eight digs.
Southern Vermont was led by Fitzgerald who recorded seven kills on the afternoon, while senior Anthony Barahona (Eagle Rock, Calif.) had four. Dighton and junior Keven Walley (Pico Rivera, Calif.) had three kills apiece in the loss. Dighton also recorded three blocks. Junior Florentino Escovedo (Fresno, Calif.) had 14 digs and a block while senior Anthony Ayala (Pico Rivera, Calif.) had 16 assists.
Wentworth travels to third-ranked Rivier on Wednesday night in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference match while Southern Vermont hosts The Sage Colleges on Thursday night.
