Saints Sweep Saturday Tri-Match With Wins Over Lasell, Colby-Sawyer

THE BASICS 

Score: 
Match 1: Emmanuel 3 – Lasell 2 (25-22, 24-26, 25-22, 17-25, 15-10)
Match 2: Emmanuel 3 – Colby-Sawyer 0 (25-15, 25-18, 25-13)

Records: 
Emmanuel College Saints (9-5, 3-2 GNAC)
Lasell University Lasers (6-5, 2-1 GNAC)
Colby-Sawyer College Chargers (2-7, 0-4 GNAC)

Location: Boston, Mass. – Jean Yawkey Center / Andy Yosinoff Court

Date: Saturday, February 18, 2023

THE LEAD – A thrilling five-set finish was the setup to a tri-match Saturday sweep for Emmanuel Men's Volleyball, as a 3-2 win vs. Lasell, followed by a 3-0 victory against Colby-Sawyer, gave EC a well-earned two wins in the day's Great Northeast Athletic Conference tri-match.

MATCH 1 - HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Saints claimed victories in sets one and three while the Lasers posted wins in sets two and four, setting up a five-set thriller in Saturday's tri-match opener.
• The Lasers were in position to claim the victory, opening the fifth set with seven of the first nine points to lead 7-2. Emmanuel fought back into the set thanks to first-year Trey Guest (Newington, Conn.) and his back-to-back service aces, moving the EC deficit to 7-5. First-year Michael Shelley (San Francisco, Calif.) would chip in, later in the set, scoring consecutive points, to pull EC within one at 8-7.
• After a Lasers kill reestablished a two-point edge, it was all Saints to close out the fifth set. A series of three kills by sophomore Jyles Amirault (Andover, Mass.), mixed in with three attack errors on the Lasers side, erased the EC deficit, boosting them to a 13-9 lead. The next two points were traded by the sides, and with their first match point of the day, the Saints, thanks to one final kill by Amirault, overcame the early fifth-set deficit to come back for a 15-10 set win.

MATCH 1 - INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Amirault finished with a season-high 19 kills to go along with seven digs.
• Shelley chipped in with a career-best 15 kills, hitting .310 from the floor, in five sets of play.
• Senior Roman Fabrizio (Salem, N.H.) had a match-high 49 assists, accounting for all but three of the EC helpers in the match.
• Lasers sophomore Theo Zaharewicz (Bethany, Conn.) shattered his career-high for kills in a match, finishing the afternoon with 30 kills on a .423 attack percentage. Zaharewicz's previous career high came on two occasions previously with 15 kills being the old mark.
• Senior Brendan Joyce (Randolph, Mass.) added eight kills to go with four digs.
• Senior Jesus Garcia (Honolulu, Hawaii) finished with 46 assists and five digs.
• The match's second set provided a view into the offensive potential of the two sides. Lasell finished the set with 14 kills on 22 attempts with two errors to hit .545 from the floor. Emmanuel had 17 team kills in the second, matched with 26 attempts and four errors, resulting in a .500 hitting percentage.

MATCH 2 – HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Saints second match of the afternoon finished in straight sets, as the Saints took control early on in the first set with the help of separate runs of 7-0 and 6-0 that eventually saw EC lead 17-8. Another five-point streak increased the Emmanuel lead as a kill by sophomore Leonard Kim (Los Angeles, Calif.) capped off the first set for EC with a 25-15 win.
• After a close start to the second set, the Saints again pulled away, this time using a 9-1 scoring spurt to open up a 16-7 advantage. Colby-Sawyer fought back, closing to within four points with the help of a 7-2 run that had them trailing 18-14. Emmanuel managed to steady themselves, holding off CSC to the finish and with a kill by sophomore Aiden McGowan (Marston Mills, Mass.), the Saints claimed the second set, 25-18.
• The third set started similar to the second with the Saints and Chargers swapping points, eventually leading to a Colby-Sawyer lead of 10-9. But Saints sophomore Jacob Aronov (Natick, Mass.) stepped to the service line and provided a string of nine-straight points on his serve, flipping the third set to ECs favor at 18-10. Emmanuel coasted to the finish in the straight sets sweep, clinching the match on an ace by sophomore Devon Perelgut (Plaistow, N.H.), for a 25-13 set win.

MATCH 2 – INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Perelgut and sophomore Thor Yingling (Truro, Mass.) both finished with eight kills in the win. Perelgut was extremely efficient with his play, ending the match with no errors on 12 attempts, to hit .667 from the floor.
• Kim added five kills for the Saints while Aronov chipped in with 28 assists.
• Chargers sophomore Isaac Davies (Hinesburg, Vt.) had a match-best 12 kills to go along with nine digs.
• Junior Austin Ponsness (Queen Creek, Ariz.) added eight kills, hitting .300 for the match.

UP NEXT

• The Saints break for a week before returning to play on Saturday, Feb. 25 in a tri-match at Eastern Nazarene with the Lions and No. 3 Springfield, starting at 10:00 a.m.
• The Lasers are back on Wednesday, Feb. 22, hosting Dean in GNAC play at 7:00 p.m.
• The Chargers host Eastern Nazarene ahead of the Saints Saturday tri-match, facing the Lions on Feb. 22 at 7:00 p.m.