#9 Men's Volleyball Opens Season with Five-Set Thriller over Kean

UNION, N.J. – Multiple student-athletes stuffed the stat sheet as the No. 9-ranked Wentworth Institute of Technology men's volleyball team opened their season Friday night with a thrilling five-set come-from-behind victory over the Kean Cougars in non-conference play.

Leading the way was Conner Foxwell, who totaled 17 finishes at a .615 clip and registered six blocks. Andrew Ahn helped on both sides of the ball in his Black & Gold debut, smacking 14 kills while tacking on 11 digs. Brayden Green (29 assists) and Josh Milke (24) each facilitated the offensive attack.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• The two teams traded points to begin the opening frame, with Wentworth knotting the score at seven-all on a Foxwell kill. Another Foxwell finish marked a 10-9 lead for the Leopards before two kills from Ahn and Nicolai Bell helped finish a back-and-forth with an 18-16 Wentworth edge. One kill aside for Ahn and Foxwell marked a 20-18 lead before the two teams swapped scores, with the Leopards fending off the Cougars 26-24 on back-to-back kills from Bell and Ahn.
• Kean began the second set with a 4-1 run before later continuing the advantage to 10-5. Behind 16-12, Wentworth rattled off four straight points, featuring two finishes from Foxwell, to knot the score. The Cougars went on another run, this time 7-0, to take a 24-17 lead. The Leopards closed the gap at 24-20, but Kean held on 25-20.
• The Cougars rattled off a 5-1 run to start the third set before Wentworth later knotted the score at seven aside with kills from Ahn and Bell. Kean then scored six straight, pushing the lead to 13-7, before holding on to the lead the rest of the set for a 25-22 win.
• After the two teams swapped scores to ramp up the fourth frame, the Leopards shot out to a 10-4 lead on a series of errors before two kills from Foxwell later helped mark a 16-11 lead. A Matthew Zegowitz finish marked a 19-15 advantage before a two kills from Alem Dubcak kickstarted a 6-2 run for the Leopards to finish the set, with Wentworth taking the frame 25-18.
• Kean sprouted out to a 4-1 lead in the fifth set before the Black & Gold clawed back, with a crucial Green kill knotting the score at seven-all. A Green service ace marked a 10-8 lead before two finishes from Dubcak took part in a 4-0 run that gave Wentworth a 15-10 set win.
  

SERIES NOTES:

• Tonight marked the third all-time meeting between the two teams and first since 2012. Wentworth leads the all-time series, 2-1.

NEXT UP:

• The Leopards finish up the Clash at Kean tomorrow, facing No. 13-ranked Nichols (12:00 p.m.) and No. 6-ranked Vassar (2:00 p.m.).

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