Men's Volleyball Starts Season With Straight Sets Loss at No. 7 Springfield

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – The Springfield College men's volleyball team opened its home slate with a 3-0 win over Emmanuel College tonight in Blake Arena. The Pride were victorious by set scores of 25-19, 25-14, 25-16.

Springfield, which was ranked No. 7 in the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Division III national poll and No. 5 by FrogJump Volleyball, is now 1-1 on the season, while Emmanuel, which played its first match of the 2024 season tonight, is 0-1.

Springfield was guided offensively by first-year Sam Levinson (La Grange, Ill.), who hit .500 on the night with 11 kills. Junior Chris Rouleau (Bay Shore, N.Y.), sophomore Evan Costley (Simi Valley, Calif.), first-year Brennan Cutter (Trumbull, Conn.) and sophomore Ethan Walters (St. Louis, Mo.) all recorded six kills in the balanced attack for the Pride, while sophomore Dylan Mulvaney (Reston, Va.) posted 32 assists to go along with a trio of kills of his own.

Saints sophomore Trey Guest (Newington, Conn.) paced Emmanuel with seven kills in the effort for the visitors. Junior Jyles Amirault (Andover, Mass.) added six kills in the loss.

The Pride jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the first following a block and a kill by Rouleau before extending its advantage to five at 9-4 on a swing by Cutter. Emmanuel got as close as three in the first on two occasions – the final time coming at 20-17 – before a kill from Cutter paired with two Saints errors gave Springfield a 23-17 edge. An Emmanuel service error and a swing by Rouleau gave Springfield a 25-19 set one win. The Pride hit at a .524 clip in the first with 13 kills on 21 attempts.

Tied at six in the second, Springfield embarked on a 10-2 run that was powered by two kills and an ace by Walters for a 16-8 differential. Up by an 18-11 score, the Pride ended the set with a 7-3 spurt capped by an ace from Rouleau for a 2-0 lead in the match.

Springfield hit a match-best .545 in the third with 14 kills to secure the sweep and the team's first win of the 2024 campaign. The Pride raced out to a 7-3 edge after a swing by Walters and with junior Ethan Weislo (Orchard Park, N.Y.) at the service line, posted six straight points including a pair of aces for a 16-7 advantage. Both teams traded points late in the set before kills from junior Giancarlo Carrion (Trujillo Alto, Puerto Rico) and Costley gave Springfield a 25-16 set three victory.

Tonight's win for Springfield College marked the 500th career victory for Head Coach Charlie Sullivan as he embarks on his 26th season on Alden Street. Sullivan sports a career record of 500-194 (.720 win percentage) and is the tenth NCAA men's volleyball head coach and third NCAA Division III men's volleyball head coach to reach the 500 career win plateau.

The Saints break for nine days before hosting the inaugural Fenway Classic on Jan. 27 and 28. Emmanuel starts the tournament with matches against Baruch and Nichols, starting at 1:00 p.m. Springfield will travel to St. Joseph's Long Island on Saturday, January 20 for a 4:00 pm matchup in New York. St. Joseph's is currently receiving votes in this week's AVCA Division III national poll.