Volleyball Drops Two in Key GNAC Tri to Lasell & Rivier

THE BASICS 
Emmanuel College, 1 vs. Lasell University, 3 (25-18, 25-27, 25-23, 25-16)
Rivier University, 3 vs. Emmanuel College, 0 (25-20, 25-21, 25-22)

Records: 
Emmanuel Saints (15-12, 8-5 GNAC)
Lasell Lasers (15-12, 9-3 GNAC)
Rivier Raiders (16-9, 10-2 GNAC)

Location: Newton, Mass. – LU Athletic Center

Date: Saturday, April 11, 2023

THE LEAD – Emmanuel College dropped two key Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) men's volleyball matches Saturday afternoon vs. Lasell University (3-1) and Rivier University (3-0) on the Lasell campus. With the pair of setbacks, the Saints drop down to fourth in the conference standings just two weeks ahead of GNAC postseason play.

HOW IT HAPPENED (vs. Lasell)

• The Lasers posted a 25-18 win to get off to a quick start vs. EC, hitting .318 in the opening set while holding the Saints to a .069 clip and seven attacking errors.
• Unfazed, Emmanuel bounced back with their best hitting set of the afternoon, collecting 16 kills on a .406 hitting % to post a 27-25 win to even the match at 1-1.
• The third set featured some back and forth side-out play that came down to the wire with the hosts pulling out a 25-23 win that included 19 kills by an aggressive Laser front row.
• The hosts used the momentum and cruised to a 25-16 win in the fourth set to take the match, 3-1, and even up the season head-to-head series at 1-1.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS (vs. Lasell)

• The Lasers hit .328 as a team led by 14 kills from Theo Zaharewicz (Bethany, Conn.) and 12 kills from Brenden Joyce (Randolph, Mass.). Both also finished with double-digit digs totals for a pair of double-doubles.
• LU setter Jesus Garcia (Honolulu, Hawaii) dished out 44 helpers
• EC sophomore Jyles Amirault (Andover, Mass.) recorded a team-high 11 kills while classmate Louis DaSilva (Marseille, France) added nine winners while hitting .333.
• Senior setter Roman Fabrizio (Salem, N.H.) registered 31 assists, eight digs, three kills and two aces for a solid all-around stat line in the setback.
• The loss snapped the Saints six-match winning streak, their longest of the 2023 campaign.

HOW IT HAPPENED (vs. Rivier)

• The Raiders set the tone for the match with a .464 hitting line in the opening set, not making one error (13-0-28) to pick up a 25-20 win.
• The second set featured tied scored at 17, 18, 19, 20 and 21 before Rivier closed the match with four consecutive points to pick up the 25-21 win and 2-0 lead.
• Emmanuel led by as many as four in the final set (14-10) before the Raiders put together an 8-1 surge midway through the action to retake an 18-15 lead. Emmanuel was able to regroup and even the score at 19-all and again the sides traded points to a 21-21 score before Riv closed the door by outscoring the Saints 4-1 over the final minutes of the day for the 25-22 win.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS (vs. Rivier)

• Rivier got 13 kills and a .444 showing from the field by Sokunbuth Ly (Lowell, Mass.) while Chris Lezon (Lincoln, R.I.) and Jack Normandin (Clifton Park, N.Y.) each contributed eight kills in the GNAC win.
• The Raiders hit .326 (39-11-86) as a squad while holding Emmanuel to just a .129 (30-19-93) outing.
• Amirault once again paced EC with a team-high 11 kills to go along with 10 digs for a double-double.
• Fabrizio recorded 21 assists to put him just two shy of 1,500 on his Emmanuel career.

UP NEXT

• Emmanuel hosts Regis College on Tuesday, April 4 at 7:00 PM for their Senior Night match.
• Both Lasell and Rivier are back on the court the same day as the Lasers welcome Elms to Newton for a 7:00 PM White Ribbon Game and the Raiders host Colby-Sawyer in Nashua, N.H. at 7:00 PM.