Boston, Mass. – Senior Ryan Love (Gaithersburg, Md.) booked 16 kills with .444 hitting to lead the #15 Wentworth men's volleyball team over MIT, 3-0, on Wednesday evening inside Tansey Gymnasium. The Leopards, who recently cracked the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Top 15 Poll, swept MIT for the first time in program history. 

RECORDS

Wentworth (3-1)

MIT (2-2)

STAT LEADERS

Kills – Ryan Love (16), Ian Carlson (10), Ryan Engel (5)

Digs – Peter Klembczyk (9), Ryan Love (5), Hunter Oshman (5)

Assists – Augusto Rodriguez-Guerrios (34)

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Wentworth jumped out to a 13-2 lead in the first set and never looked back as the host Leopards took the opening stanza, 25-11. Wentworth hit .400 and took advantage of eight errors by MIT as the Leopards held the Engineers to a -.120 hitting percentage to begin the contest. Senior Ryan Love (Gaithersburg, Md.) led the Leopards with six kills in the set, while the Engineers received three kills from Steve Timberman (Merrick, N.Y.).
• After MIT scored the first point of the second set on an assisted block by Troy Oliveira (San Diego, Calif.) and Jacob Gasparich (New Lenox, Ill.), the score was tied eleven different times with the final one coming at 11-11. Wentworth went on a 6-2 run led by Love, classmate Ryan Engel (Floral Park, N.Y.) and sophomore Ian Carlson (Parker, Colo.), and built its lead to three at 16-13 and eventually took its largest lead of the set at five following an MIT timeout and a kill by Love. The Engineers got three back and forced Wentworth to call a timeout with the hosts in front 22-20, but another kill by Love gave the Leopards the set 25-21 and a 2-0 lead in the match.
• Wentworth took a 3-2 lead in the third and final set and never relinquished its lead en route to the three-set sweep of MIT on Wednesday evening in Boston. The Engineers rallied in the final moment of the stanza and cut their deficit to just two at 23-21 forcing the Leopards to call a timeout. The late rally by MIT stood at 6-2 with two kills by Oliveira as well as a kill and a solo block by Cole Linnus (Wellington, Fla.). A service error by MIT paired with a kill by Love, his 16th of the match gave Wentworth the set 25-22 and the match 3-0.

THE SERIES 

• The last time the Leopards earned a victory (3-1) against the Engineers was 1/26/16, when MIT was ranked 13^th in the country. Wentworth has five all-time wins against the crosstown rivals.
  

NEXT

• Wentworth returns to Tansey on Saturday for a tri-match with Nichols and conference opponent Regis.