MEN'S VOLLEYBALL ADVANCES TO GNAC FINALS WITH 3-2 WIN OVER WENTWORTH

BOSTON, Mass. – Junior Zach Whitermore (Whitehall, Pa.) had 14 kills, four aces, and nine digs and junior Ashanti Jackson (Sacramento, Calif.) added 14 kills to help pace the third-seeded Emmanuel College men's volleyball team to a 3-2 win over second-seeded Wentworth Institute of Technology in Great Northeast Athletic Conference semifinal played at Tansey Gymnasium.

With the win, the Saints improve to 18-11 and advance, for the third straight season, to the GNAC Championship Match where they will play top-seeded Rivier which defeated fifth-seeded Lasell 3-0. The Leopards see their 10-match win streak come to an end and stand at 25-8 on the season.

In the opening set, there were eight ties and four lead changes as the teams battled back and forth early. Emmanuel jumped out to a 20-16 lead before Wentworth pulled back within one on a senior Ross Burdett (Needham, Mass.) kill. The Saints got back-to-back kills from junior Ryan Kessler (Santa Clarita, Calif.) and Jackson to lead 23-20 before Burdett and senior Brian Mann (East Freetown, Mass.) recorded back-to-back kills to make it 23-22.

After a Leopard service error made it 24-22, Burdett recorded his fourth kill of the set to make it a one-point margin before Jackson ended the set with a kill. Kessler had seven kills on 13 swings in the opening set, while Jackson added four.

Emmanuel came out by scoring five of the first six points of the second set and took a 5-1 lead on a Whitermore kill. A Mann kill and a Saint error made it 5-3, however Emmanuel scored six of the next 10 points and led 9-5 after a Wentworth attack error. The Saints would lead by as many as five (17-12) after an Whitermore ace before Wentworth scored the next five points, tying the set at 17-all on a block from Burdett and junior Sean Donahue (Lincoln, R.I.). The set would be tied four more times before the Saints took a 22-21 lead on a Whitermore kill. After a Donahue kill made it 24-22, Kessler ended the set with a kill and gave the Saints a 2-0 lead.

Whitermore had six kills and three aces in the second set to help Emmanuel hit .364. Donahue and Burdett had three kills apiece for the Leopards, who also hit above .300 (.304).

The Leopards staved off elimination in the third set with a 25-22 win as freshman Sam Pisker (Mullica Hill, N.J.) and Burdett had three kills apiece and Mann had three blocks. Wentworth started the set by scoring the first three points, two of which came on aces from freshman Collin Ritter (Feeding Hills, Mass.). The Leopards extended their lead to 9-3 on a Pisker kill, which forced an Emmanuel timeout. Out of the timeout the Saints used a 7-3 spurt to pull within 12-10 on a sophomore Garrett McGarry (Chicago, Ill.) kill.

Wentworth upped its lead to 17-13 on a Donahue kill and led by five on a Burdett kill. Kessler had a kill and an ace to pull the Saints to 18-15. The Leopards lead by as many as six (23-17) on a Mann block, however Emmanuel scored five of the next six points and pulled within 24-22 on a Whitermore kill. Wentworth called a timeout and, out of the timeout, the Saints served an error to give the hosts the win. Whitermore and Jackson had four kills apiece in the fourth set, whle McGarry had three blocks.

After the teams traded points to open the fourth set, the Leopards used a 16-6 run and never looked back, taking a 25-14 win. Wentworth hit .435 in the set and forced Emmanuel to hit -.033. A balanced attack by the Leopards contributed to the cause as Donahue had four kills on four swings and had a pair of blocks, while Pisker and freshman Jake Reed (Arvada, Colo.) had three kills apiece. Mann had three block assists. Jackson had four kills four Emmanuel in the set.

The two teams capitalized on each other's errors to open the fifth set, trading points at the beginning. Emmanuel pulled ahead, 7-2, after a Leopard attack error and would lead, 8-4, when the teams switched sides.

Wentworth would roll off three straight points with Donahue contributing a pair of blocks to make it 8-7. The Leopards made it a one-point set (10-9) after a Mann kill, which forced an Emmanuel timeout. Back-to-back kills from McGarry forced a Wentworth timeout and a McGarry block gave Emmanuel a 14-9 lead. Kills by Burdett, Reed, and Pisker brought Wentworth to 14-12, however a Jackson kill ended the match.

McGarry had three kills and two blocks in the deciding set, while Whitermore added a pair of kills of his own. Reed had three kills for the Leopards while Donahue added two.

Kessler recorded 12 kills and five digs for the Saints who also received eight kills and six blocks from McGarry. Sophomore Ernie Gurule (Los Angeles, Calif.) had nine digs, including three in the fifth set. Junior Sean Baxley (Saint James, N.Y.) set 43 assists and had seven digs.

Four players had 10 or more kills for Wentworth as Donahue had 12 to go along with an attack percentage of .400 and seven blocks. Burdett had 11 kills and three blocks, Reed had 11 kills, seven digs, and four blocks, and Pisker added 10 kills of his own. Senior Mike Buonincontra (Shelton, Conn.) had a match-high 13 digs, Mann had six kills and seven blocks, and Ritter had 38 assists, two aces, seven digs, and five blocks.

Wentworth will await a possible ECAC Tournament berth, which will be announced on Monday afternoon.

*Release courtesy of WIT Sports Information Dept.