SAINTS BEGIN THE DAY WITH A WIN OVER GNAC FOE EMERSON, 3-2

THE BASICS 

Score: Emerson College, 2; Emmanuel College, 3 (25-23, 15-25, 16-25, 22-25, 13-15)
Records: Emerson College Lions (9-8, GNAC 2-6); Emmanuel College Saints (9-12, GNAC 4-4)
Location: Boston, Mass. – Andy Yosinoff Court
Date: Saturday, March 24^th, 2018

THE LEAD: The Emmanuel College Men's Volleyball team began the day with a win over Emerson College in Great Northeast Athletic Conference play, as junior outside hitter Erik English (Simi Valley, Calif.) and sophomore middle hitter John Carroll (Massapequa, N.Y) led the offense of the Saints with a combined 28 kills to defeat the Lions in five sets, (25-23, 15-25, 16-25, 22-25, 13-15), Saturday afternoon in Great Northeast Athletic Conference men's volleyball action.

HOW IT HAPPENED 

SET 1

• The Lions scored the first two points of the day off of back to back attacking errors by the Saints before Carroll scored on back to back kills to tie the set, 2-2.
• Both teams traded points, staying within one, until Emerson began to pull away as Diego Garcia (Honolulu, Hawaii) recorded back to back kills, 11-15.
• The Saints were not able to overcome the mid-set deficit as Nick Rusk (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) and Garcia closed out the first set for the Lions, 23-25.

SET 2

• Emmanuel changed the tune of the second set, going on a 12-4 run to begin the set, highlighted by kills from Carroll and Kevin Orsley (San Jose, Calif.), along with an assisted block by Carroll and Seamus McDonagh (Long Beach, N.Y.).
• The Saints continued their offensive attack as Carroll recorded another three kills and Erik English (Simi Valley, Calif.) recorded one of his own to extend the lead, 19-0.
• Mar Piorkowski (Montclair, N.J.) and Rusk tried to light a spark for the Lions late in the set, but Orsley and Carroll closed out the set for the Saints, 25-15.

SET 3

• EC started at a 0-2 deficit as Win Kittivatcharapong (Bangkok, Thailand) recorded an early set kill for the Lions, but woke up offensively to go on a 10-4 run on kills by English and Carroll, 10-6.
• The Lions remained within four late in the set thanks to a kill by Stig Regan (Kailua, Hawaii.) and a service ace by Garcia, 18-14.
• The Saints closed out the set on a 7-2 run, led by the offense of Alex Silva (Jamaica Plain, Mass.), Carroll and Orsley.

SET 4

• The Lions were not going to go down without a fight, trading back to back points with the Saints before pulling away as Regan and Marcus Cepeda (Sacramento, Calif.) combined for a block, 8-11.
• Emerson was able to continue their run, scoring eight points in a row due to five attacking errors by the Saints and two service aces by Piorkowski, 11-19.
• Emmanuel made Lions work for their last six points, as English recorded late set kills and assisted in a block with Silva, but Emerson finished off the set with a kill by Rusk. 21-25.

SET 5

• The Saints began the final set with a kill by Orsley but then went down 1-2 on a service error by the Saints and service ace by Piorkowski.
• Both teams traded points back and forth with kills on both sides before the Saints were able to extend the lead to two thanks to a kill by English, assisted by McDonagh and a service ace by Carroll, 12-10.
• Emmanuel was able to close out the match, 15-13, on an assisted block by McDonash and Silva, and kills by Orsley and English, 15-13.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS 

• English and Carroll both recorded a team-high 14 kills for the Saints, along with 22 digs, one assists and three assisted blocks.
• Rusk of the Lions recorded a game-high 15 kills, along with 14 digs and a .208 kill percentage on the day.
• The Saints defensively outmatched the Lions, recording 74 digs on the match in comparison to only 59 for the Lions.

UP NEXT

• Emerson has a few days off before heading to Johnson & Wales for a Great Northeast Athletic Conference match-up on Tuesday, March 27^th at 7 PM.
• Emmanuel will be back in action tomorrow, Sunday, March 25 as they host a non-conference tri-match against Cal Lutheran and Lesley University beginning at 12 PM.