MEN’S VOLLEYBALL SPLITS HUNTER TRI-MATCH

NEW YORK, N.Y. – The Emmanuel College men's volleyball team posted a 3-1 (25-22, 25-21, 27-29, 26-24) victory over Saint Joseph's College of Long Island before falling to host Hunter College, 3-0 (19-25, 14-25, 16-25), Saturday afternoon at the Hunter Sportsplex. With the split, the Saints now stand at 3-6 overall on the year while Hunter improve to 9-2 and SJLI moves to a 4-4 record.

Match 1 vs. Saint Joseph's (L.I.)

Emmanuel posted back-to-back wins in the first and second sets to take a 2-0 lead in the match before the Golden Eagles battled in the third set, avoiding a sweep with a 29-27 victory. The Saints had three chances to end the match in the third with leads at 25-24, 26-25 and 27-26 but Saint Joseph's was able to side out each time and eventually close the set on a 3-0 run to force a fourth set. The fourth set was very similar to the third as both teams held leads but the Saints came out on top for the 26-24 win.

The sophomore duo of Erik English (Simi Valley, Calif.) and Kevin Orsley (San Jose, Calif.) combined for 36 kills in the win with each hitter swinging for 18 winners. Sophomore setter Seamus McDonagh (Long Beach, N.Y.) dished out a season-high 48 assists to go along with four block assists. Freshman outside hitter Manuel Velez (San Jose, Costa Rica) posted a team-high 14 digs while English added 12 for a double-double. Sophomore defensive specialist Elijah Parks (Long Beach, N.Y.) also record 10 digs in the win.

Freshman middle Kyle Biggers (Holbrook, N.Y.) led the way for the Golden Eagles with a team-high 10 kills.

Match 2 vs. Hunter

The Saints got off to a slow start against the Hawks and never recovered as Hunter posted a 25-19 win in the opening set. The Hawks, who are ranked #16 in the nation in the most recent AVCA Coaches' Poll, cruised to a 25-14 win in the second set before completing the sweep with a 25-16 third set win. Hunter held the Saints to a dismal .037 hitting percentage compared to a gaudy .442 offensive showing that saw 43 kills.

Ben Crusinberry (Lincoln, Neb.) posted 14 kills and Michael Jazgarski (Woodhaven, N.Y.) added 12 winners for Hunter while Nicolas Sanchez (New York, N.Y.) passed out 33 assists in the match.

For the Saints, McDonagh collected 20 assists while sophomore Alex Silva (Jamica Plain, Mass.) and freshman Max Gottuso (Long Beach, N.Y.) paced the offensive showing with five kills each.

Next Up

Emmanuel returns to action tomorrow for a tri-match at Kean University beginning at 2:00 PM when they Saints take on SUNY Poly followed by a 4:00 PM tilt against host Kean.