PROVIDENCE, R.I. – The Wentworth Institute of Technology men's volleyball team split a pair of matches at the 2014 Johnson & Wales Invitational Friday night. Wentworth defeated the host Wildcats, 3-0, in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference match before falling to Vassar, 3-1.
Wentworth raced out to a 14-4 lead in the opening set against Johnson & Wales and never looked back. The Leopards hit .480 as a team and were led by junior Sean Donahue (Lincoln, R.I.) who had four kills and a pair of blocks while senior Ross Burdett (Needham, Mass.) and freshman Sam Pisker (Mullica Hill, N.J.) had three kills apiece.
The second set saw 17 ties and six lead changes before the Black & Gold took a 20-19 lead when Pisker and Donahue teamed up for a block. The two teamed up for another block to make it 21-19. Johnson & wales would cut the lead to 24-23, however a freshman Collin Ritter (Feeding Hills, Mass.) kill ended the set at 25-23. The Leopards had another stellar set hitting wise, with a .480 attack percentage as freshman Jake Reed (Arvada, Colo.) had five kills.
Wentworth hit .692 in the third set – recording 10 kills in 13 swings with just one error – and cruised to a 25-15 win. Donahue had four kills and two blocks to help complete the sweep.
Reed recorded 10 kills while Donahue had eight kills, hit .889, and had seven blocks. Burdett and Pisker finished with five kills apiece, and Ritter had four kills, 28 assists, and four blocks.
The Leopards would hit .688 in the opening set against Vassar, recording 12 kills on 16 swings and only committing one error. Pisker (four kills) and senior Brian Mann (East Freetown, Mass.) had three kills apiece.
In the second set there were 14 ties and eight lead changes before the Brewers took a 22-21 lead after a Wentworth service error. The Leopards trained 23-22 after a Vassar service error, however the Brewers recorded back-to-back kills to even the match with a 25-23 win. Burdett had four kills, while Donahue had three kills and a block.
Vassar took a 2-1 lead with a 25-20 win in the third set, a set that saw the teams battle through four ties early before the Brewers took the lead for good at 5-4. The Leopards tied the score for the fifth time of the set at 12-all on a Vassar attack error, however an 11-4 run gave the Brewers a 23-17 lead. Pisker and Mann each had three kills.
The Brewers closed out the match with a 25-15 win in the fourth set after using an early, 8-3 run to break open a tie score. Reed and Burdett had two kills each.
Pisker paced the Leopards with nine kills while Reed and Pisker had eight kills and three aces apiece. Donahue had six kills and four blocks, Burdett had six kills, and Ritter had 30 assists. Reed and senior Mike Buonincontra (Shelton, Conn.) had eight and seven digs, respectively.
The Leopards (14-4) continue tournament play on Saturday as they play York (N.Y.) at 10:00 and fifth-ranked MIT at Noon.
Johnson & Wales
Vassar