FIFTH-RANKED SAINTS HANG ON FOR 3-2 WIN OVER LASERS
NEWTON, Mass.- The Emmanuel College Men's Volleyball Team edged the Lasers of Lasell College, 3-2, improving to 11-2 in Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) action. The five sets were close throughout, with the fifth going down to the wire: 25-17, 20-25, 25-23, 18-25, and 13-15. The Saints, who were ranked 5th in New England in this week’s NCAA Regional ranking, now stand at 16-13 on the season. The Lasers fall to 5-7 in conference play while going to 12-13 overall.
NEWTON, Mass. – The Emmanuel College Men's Volleyball Team edged the Lasers of Lasell College, 3-2, improving to 11-2 in Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) action. The five sets were close throughout, with the fifth going down to the wire: 25-17, 20-25, 25-23, 18-25, and 13-15. The Saints, who were ranked 5th in New England in this week's NCAA Regional ranking, now stand at 16-13 on the season. The Lasers fall to 5-7 in conference play while going to 12-13 overall.
Sophomore Zach Whitermore (Whitehall, Pa.) led the Emmanuel offence, notching a double-double with his match-high 18 kills and 10 digs. Classmate Ashanti Jackson (Sacramento, Calif.) tallied 13 kills and nine digs, while Ryan Kessler (Santa Clarita, Calif.) recorded another standout match with 11 kills, hitting .304. Senior setter Nick Updike handed out a match-high 49 assists, to go along with his 11 digs, 3 kills and 3 assisted blocks. Rookie libero Ernie Gurule (Los Angeles, Calif.) gathered a match-high 16 digs in the win.
Junior Dan Raffol (Natick, Mass.) led Lasell, registering a double-double, as he had 12 kills and 10 digs on the night. Senior Alex Mill (Danville, N.H.) followed along with 10 kills and six digs, while classmate Chris Burns (Chelmsford, Mass.) tallied a team-high 13 digs in the loss.
The Saints would start the night by taking an early 5-2 lead before Lasell rallied back to assume control and make it 8-7 after going on a 6-2 run. A kill by Whitermore would tie the first set at 8, before taking a brief lead, at 10-9. Emmanuel would call a timeout, but not before the Lasers exploded to a 20-13 lead, following an 11-3 run. Both teams would exchange serves down the stretch, but Lasell would eventually take the opening set 25-17.
Again Emmanuel started the set with an early lead, this time jumping out to a 7-2 lead that forced the Lasell bench to call a timeout. Five straight points followed for the Lasers which brought the score even at 7-7. Once more, the teams would battle each other exchanging serves but never relinquishing a lead of more than two points. With the score standing at 16-14 for Saints, Lasell again decided to call timeout, however this time Emmanuel took advantage and padded their lead with four-straight points to make it, 20-14 thanks in part to a pair of kills by Whitermore. The Lasers would claw themselves back to get within two at 20-18, but the Saints would ultimately win the set 25-20 and tie the match at 1-1.
The third set began with Lasell taking an early 6-3 lead, before an Emmanuel rally and a kill by Wyatt Cooper (Ridgefield, Conn.) made it 6-6. Both opponents struggled to establish a comfortable lead as they would alternate the services. Finally, with the Lasers trailing 18-16, they were able to score four straight points to take the lead and make it 20-18. A back and forth match would ensue until the very end, when Lasell earned the third set win at 25-23.
Emmanuel would take the fourth set 25-18, after taking an early lead. The Saints only gave up control to Lasell once as the Lasers made it 7-6 in early the going. The Saints regained the lead and never looked back, as they pushed the match to go the distance, forging a fifth set.
In the final set, both teams engaged in a tight race to be the first to 15. Lasell would assume the first lead with a kill by Drew Caruso (Haverhill, Mass.) to make it 3-1. Kills from Ryan Kessler (Santa Clarita, Calif.) and Whitermore, would help the Saints take a 5-4 lead. The Lasers held an 8-7 lead as they switched the sides of net. Lasers miscues and a score by Kessler gave the visitors a slim 10-9 edge that was followed by a timeout from the Lasell. Caruso's kill assisted by Ryan Jackson would knot action up at 10. The hosts would eventually take the lead as an attack error by Zach Whitermore made it 13-12, but Whitermore would make up for it as he immediately made things even at 13. Emmanuel would take the deciding set 15-13.
The Saints and Lasers will wrap up their regular season on Saturday, April 6, against conference opponents. Emmanuel will be traveling to New Haven to take on the Falcons of Albertus Magnus College, while Lasell faces-off against Wentworth and Johnson & Wales in a tri-match at Wentworth.
- Release courtesy of Lasell College Sports Information