BOSTON, Mass. – Senior Ross Burdett (Needham, Mass.) became the Wentworth Institute of Technology men's volleyball program's all-time kill leader as the Leopards swept Great Northeast Athletic Conference a tri-match hosted by Emerson College. Wentworth rallied to defeat Johnson & Wales, 3-1, before dispatching of the host Lions, 3-0.
Against Johnson & Wales the opening set back a back-and-forth affair that featured 21 ties and 15 lead changes. Wentworth's lead of 13-10 was the largest by either side during the set and the Leopards would have two chances to close out the set at 25-24 and 26-25. However, the Wildcats, who hit .419 in the opening frame, scored three straight points on a kill, a service ace, and a Leopard attack error to take a 28-26 win. Junior Sean Donahue (Lincoln, R.I.) had five of his team's 17 kills in the set and also teamed with freshman Collin Ritter (Feeding Hills, Mass.) for a block.
The second set would see 13 ties and six lead changes before Wentworth took the lead for good at 17-16 on a Burdett kill. The Leopards led by as many as five (23-18) late and would close out the set, 25-19, on a freshman Alex Potts (Nierville, N.Y.) block. Burdett (five kills) and Donahue (four kills, two blocks) paced the offensive attack and senior Mike Buonincontra (Shelton, Conn.) had six digs.
Behind a .429 attack percentage in the third set, Wentworth took a 2-1 lead with a 25-14 win. An 8-2 run keyed upping a 10-6 lead to an 18-8 advantage. Burdett would close out the set with a kill, one of four he had in the set. Freshman Sam Pisker (Mullica Hill, N.J.) added four kills in the set and Buonincontra had five digs. The Leopards forced Johnson & Wales to an attack percentage of -.160.
Wentworth closed out the match with a 25-22 win in the fourth set as the Black & Gold hit .412. Burdett had six kills, including his record-breaking one, which gave the Leopards match point at 24-19 and his sixth kill of the frame gave Wentworth a 25-19 win. Freshman Jake Reed (Arvada, Colo.) had five kills, while Donahue and Pisker had three and two, respectively.
Burdett finished with 18 kills, three blocks, and an attack percentage of .484. Donahue made just one error on 27 swings as he had 14 kills and hit .481. Reed (12 kills) and Pisker (eight kills) helped pace the offense. Ritter assisted on 51 kills and Buonincontra had 15 digs.
The Leopard momentum continued into their match against Emerson as the Black & Gold took a 25-21 win in the opening set. Reed, Pisker, and Potts recorded three kills apiece, with Reed having four digs and Ritter and Donahue adding a pair of blocks each.
Burdett had six kills on nine swings in the second set, helping the Leopards take a 2-0 lead with a 25-22 win. Potts had three kills and four blocks in the frame with Reed and Pisker recording two kills apiece. Reed also had three digs as the Leopards snapped a late, 19-all tie and prevailed, 25-22.
Wentworth forced Emerson to an attack percentage of .087 in the third set while hitting .357 as a team. Donahue and junior Rami Akouri (Fall River, Mass.) recorded three kills apiece in the set while Potts, Burdett, and freshman Mike Hansen (Rochester, N.Y.) had two kills apiece.
For the match Burdett had nine kills, two aces, four digs, and two blocks. He now has 1,167 for his career, breaking the previous record of 1,156 which was set by Dominik Szpyrka '06. Donahue did not commit an error on 10 swings, adding six kills, hitting .600, and recording three blocks. Potts finished with eight kills and seven blocks, Reed had six kills and nine digs, Buonincontra had seven digs, and Ritter had 35 assists, six digs, and five blocks. As a team the Black & Gold had 12 blocks.
The Leopards continue GNAC play Tuesday night when the host Albertus Magnus.
Johnson & Wales
Emerson