BROOKILINE, Mass. – Paced by 19 kills and 10 service aces from sophomore Sean Mullen (Longwood, Fla.), the Wentworth Institute of Technology men's volleyball team took a pair of non-conference matches as the Leopards defeated Daniel Webster, 3-1, and Newbury, 3-0, in a tri-match hosted by Newbury.
WENTWORTH 3, DANIEL WEBSTER 1
The Leopards trailed for the majority of the first set and the Eagles had their largest lead of the set come at 17-8 after a kill. Wentworth came clawing back to score 12 of the next 15 points and tied the set at 20-all after a kill from junior Alex Potts (Niverville, N.Y.). However, a block gave the Eagles a 21-20 lead and Daniel Webster would go on to take a 25-21 win. Potts had three kills in the set while Mullen and junior Jake Reed (Arvada, Colo.) each served two aces.
Wentworth hit .611 (12-1-18) in the second set and evened the match with a 25-13 win. Mullen had a pair of aces in the early going and the Leopards took an 11-3 lead after a Daniel Webster service error. The Leopards extended their lead to 10 (18-8) when Potts and sophomore Jon Roat (Macedon, N.Y.) combined for a block and would go on to even the match with a 25-13 win. Roat was a perfect 5-0-5 in the set while Potts had three blocks and Reed added two blocks.
In the third set there were 12 ties and six lead changes and Wentworth rallied from being down 23-22 to taking a 25-23 win after kills from sophomore Ollie Oshman (Pennington, N.J.) and Reed and a bad Daniel Webster set. Roat and Mullen had four kills each in the set while Potts and junior Mike Hansen (Rochester, N.Y.) had two blocks apiece.
The Leopards used a 25-16 victory in the fourth set to close out the match as the Black & Gold led from wire-to-wire. Oshman and Potts had four and three kills, respectively, while Mullen served four aces to help Wentworth clinch the match.
Roat finished the match with 13 kills and an attack percentage of .435 while Oshman and Mullen added eight each. Oshman hit .692 (10-1-13) in the match. Potts had six blocks to go along with nine kills and an attack percentage of .429. Mullen also served eight aces and sophomore Kevin McPeek and Reed each had 19 assists.
WENTWORTH 3, NEWBURY 0
Wentworth made quick work of the Nighthawks to pick up its third straight win.
In the opening set there were nine ties and five lead changes, however the Leopards took the lead for good at 12-11 on back-to-back kills from Reed. Those two points started a run of four straight Wentworth points. The Leopards would lead by as many as seven on four occasions, including when a Roat kill clinched the set. Reed had five kills (5-0-7) in the set, while Potts added four (4-1-5).
Wentworth led wire-to-wire in the second set, en route to a 25-13 triumph. The Leopards raced out to a 10-2 lead and never looked back, leading by as many as 15 (24-9) before four straight Newbury points made the final margin a dozen. Mullen and freshman Jake Brown (Howell, N.J.) each had two kills while Wentworth forced Newbury to hit -.050 in the frame.
The Leopards closed out the match with a 25-20 win in the third set as the Black & Gold would take a 5-4 lead on a Reed ace and would maintain the lead until the Nighthawks evened the score at 18-all. However, a Mullen kill began a 7-2 run which would end the match for Wentworth. Mullen led Wentworth with four kills and four digs in the set.
Mullen led a balanced attack of Leopards with nine kills and a pair of blocks while Reed had eight kills, 14 assists and four aces. Oshman added six kills on six swings, Roat had five kills, and McPeek had 19 helpers.
Wentworth hosts top-ranked Springfield Wednesday night.
Daniel Webster
Newbury