2015 MEN’S VOLLEYBALL SEASON IN REVIEW

BOSTON, Mass. – With first-year head coach Bori May at the reigns, the Emmanuel College men's volleyball team wrapped the 2015 season with an overall record of 11-12. Despite advancing to the GNAC Semifinals, the Saints finish the year with a below .500 record for just the third time in the program's 13 year history and the first time since 2008 (14-15).

Emmanuel opened the campaign with a tough opponent in Division I Harvard University, falling to the Crimson 3-0 before notching its first win with a 3-0 victory vs. Elms on Feb. 3.

The squad opened Great Northeast Athletic Conference action with a pair of losses, falling to Lasell 3-2 at home for the program's first loss to the Lasers in the Jean Yawkey Center since 2009 despite 15 kills each by senior outside hitters Ashanti Jackson (Sacramento, Calif.) and Zach Whitermore (Whitehall, Pa.). Later that week, the Saints dropped a 3-0 decision to Rivier University.

On Feb. 21, EC posted a much needed 3-0 win over Regis College and almost pulled off the upset over No. 9 NYU the following day. The Saints held a 2-1 sets lead over the Violets only to fall in five sets, 3-2. Jackson led the way with a match-high 20 kills while junior outside hitter Barrett Wingard (York, Pa.) provided a spark off the bench with 10 kills.

The Saints registered their first GNAC win on February 25 with a 3-0 sweep over Albertus Magnus but couldn't make it two in a row, falling to No. 8 Springfield, 3-0 three days later.

A 3-0 win on March 3 vs. Emerson College proved to be one of the highlights of the year for the Saints as the matches' third set featured a score of 42-40 for the highest scoring set in program history and what is believed to be the third highest scoring set in NCAA Men's Volleyball history. Senior libero Cody Diehl (Derry, N.H.) picked up 20 digs in the win while senior setter Sean Baxley (Saint James, N.Y.) dished out 38 assists to go along with 15 digs in the match.

EC gave No. 15 Wentworth a strong effort in a 3-1 loss on March 5 and after the idle spring break week, regrouped with a 3-0 win over Mount Ida.

Back-to-back losses to MIT and Emerson left the Saints searching for a much needed "W" which they'd earn on March 24 vs. Wentworth in an epic five-set thriller. After dropping the opening two sets, the Saints rallied for the 3-2 win with Jackson posting 22 kills in the win over the No. 14 Leopards.

Looking to get some momentum, the Saints attempted to rally again against the JWU Wildcats on March 26, dropping two sets to open the match before winning the next two frames to force a decisive fifth set, only for the hosts to hold on for the 15-12 and 3-2 result. Missing Jackson and Whitermore, senior Austin Cockerill (Darien, Conn.) led the way with 17 kills while junior Drew Jordan (Braintree, Mass.) and senior Ryan Kessler (Santa Clarita, Calif.) chipped in with 15 and 13 kills, respectively. Baxley dished out a career-high 59 helpers, tying the seventh highest single-match total in EC program history.  

The Saints continued to trade wins and losses, splitting a GNAC tri-match with a win over Albertus Magnus followed by a loss to Rivier. The Saints also lost Whitermore for the remainder of the season in this match as the outside hitter suffered an injury to fingers in his right hand against the Raiders. The pattern continued with a big 3-2 win over Lasell in which Jackson notched 20 kills, only to be followed with a loss to Springfield.

On April 4, the Saints pulled off what they had been unable to do all year and win back-to-back matches to close out the GNAC regular season in a big way. They topped Johnson & Wales, 3-1, and followed it up with a 3-1 win over Mount Ida to lock in the No. 4 seed in the GNAC playoffs.

In the GNAC Quarterfinals, the Saints took on Johnson & Wales and in a rematch from earlier in the week, the Saints rolled to a 3-0 win with Wingard leading the way with 14 kills and a .522 attacking percentage.

Against Rivier in the GNAC Semifinals, the team got off to a slow start and never recovered. After dropping the opening set 25-16, the Saints began to play better in set two, holding a lead midway through the action only to fall 25-22. The story was similar in set three, leading most of the set but eventually ending the year with a 29-27 score. One bright note that came during set three was when Jackson became just the fifth player in program history to record his 1,000^th career kill.

Jackson, Baxley and Whitermore were all named to the GNAC All-Conference squad. Jackson earned First Team honors, Baxley Second and Whitermore Third.

The program bids farewell to its largest class as Jackson, Baxley, Whitermore, Cockerill, Kessler, Diehl, Wyatt Cooper (Ridgefield, Conn.), Brett Pettis (Haverhill, Mass.) and Cameron Palmer (Damascus, Md.) all graduate in May. The class compiled a four-year record of 64-50 and advanced to three straight GNAC Championship matches from 2012-2014.