SAINTS POST 3-0 WIN OVER SUNY POLY; FALL TO KEAN IN TRI-MATCH PUSH

UNION, N.J. – For the second day in the row the Emmanuel College men's volleyball team split a non-conference tri-match, posting a 3-0 victory over SUNY Poly before falling to host Kean University, 3-0. With the push, the Saints are now 4-7 on the year while SUNY stands at 7-7 and Kean is now 10-3 overall.

Match 1 vs. SUNY Poly

In the opening match of the day, the Saints cruised to a 3-0 (25-12, 25-21, 25-23) win over the Wildcats. Emmanuel capitalized with a dominating 25-12 first set win and rode the momentum to close wins in the second and third set. SUNY was coming off a five-set thriller to host Kean University just before the match with the Saints so Emmanuel benefited from the short break and took advantage of it early.

EC sophomore Erik English (Simi Valley, Calif.) posted match highs for digs (10), kills (8) and aces (4) in the victory while rookie hitter Manuel Velez (San Jose, Costa Rica) added seven kills.

Sophomore Max Szuba (Irondequoit, N.Y.) paced SUNY with a team-high seven kills.

Match 2 vs. Kean University

Kean wasted little time jumping out in front against the Saints in the opening set, riding the momentum to a 25-16 win to set the tone for the match. Emmanuel fought in the second frame only to fall by three points (25-20) before giving way to the sweep with a 25-20 score in the third set.

Despite the sweep, Emmanuel held a 12-0 advantage in total blocks vs. the hosts but it was not enough to stop them from hitting a combined .333 from the floor en route to the 3-0 win.

Freshman right side Dylan Flor (Quakertown, Pa.) led all players with 11 kills while rookie setter Ian Capp (Mechanicsburg, Pa.) dished out 22 helpers for the Cougars.

English posted a team-high six kills, five digs, three total blocks and two aces for the Saints. Freshman Seamus McDonagh (Long Beach, N.Y.) added 16 assists.

NEXT UP

Emmanuel returns to action on Thursday, February 16 when they host Elms College at 8:00 PM in a two-sport doubleheader as the Men's Basketball team opens the action with a 5:00 PM Great Northeast Athletic Conference game vs. Norwich University.