Saints Split Non-Conference Tri-Match, Coach May Becomes All-Time Wins Leader
BOSTON - In Saturday’s non-conference tri-match, the Saints split a pair of games, falling in the morning to Eastern Nazarene, followed by a straight-sets win against Mount Saint Vincent, providing Head Coach Bori May with his program-record 87th win as head coach of the Saints.
THE BASICS
Score:
Match 1: Eastern Nazarene 3 – Emmanuel 0
Match 2: Eastern Nazarene 3 – Mount Saint Vincent 0
Match 3: Emmanuel 3 – Mount Saint Vincent 0
Records:
Emmanuel College Saints (5-5, 3-1 GNAC)
Eastern Nazarene College Lions (7-6, 0-0 NECC)
College of Mount Saint Vincent Dolphins (0-5, 0-0 Skyline)
Location: Boston, Mass. – JYC Gymnasium/Andy Yosinoff Court
Date: Saturday, February 12, 2022
THE LEAD – In Saturday's non-conference tri-match, the Saints split a pair of games, falling in the morning to Eastern Nazarene, followed by a straight-sets win against Mount Saint Vincent, providing Head Coach Bori May with his program-record 87th win as head coach of the Saints.
MATCH ONE: Eastern Nazarene 3 – Emmanuel 0 (25-23, 25-22, 25-12)
- In the opening set of Saturday's tri-match, the Saints jumped out to the early advantage, leading 12-8 near the midpoint, in a back-and-forth battle of the set. The turning point came with the Lions claiming 10 of the next 12 points to flip the momentum to an 18-14 lead. The Saints fended off two set points but an ENC kill by junior Delfy Soler (Lawrence, Mass.) ended the set at 25-23.
- In the second set, the Lions grabbed control from the start, leading by as many as 10, before the Saints mounted a furious comeback that fell just short. Emmanuel trailed 20-10, but closed the gap with a 10-3 scoring surge to trail 23-20. The Saints again fended off two set points, but Soler struck against for ENC, ending the comeback hopes of Emmanuel at 25-22.
- In the third, ENC started much like they did in the second set, however they would not allow the Saints to mount a comeback on this occasion. A Lions 6-1 run would finish off the match, concluding with a service ace by sophomore Alejandro Garcia Fernandez (San Juan, P.R.) in the Lions 25-12 set win.
- For the Lions, Fernandez had a match-high 18 kills to go with a .286 hitting percentage. Soler added six kills and 10 digs in the straight-sets win.
- For the Saints, junior Daniel Keyes (Fall River, Mass.) had a team-high seven kills while hitting .250 from the floor. First-year Thor Yingling (Truro, Mass.) had five kills to go with a .273 attack percentage.
MATCH TWO: Eastern Nazarene 3 – Mount Saint Vincent 0 (25-8, 25-8, 25-18)
- In the opening set of match two, the Lions rattled off multiple scoring runs, the longest spanning five straight points, as ENC hit .550 with 11 total team kills in the 25-8 set win.
- In the second set, two separate 5-0 run early in the set gave plenty of breathing room for ENC. The Lions went on to hit a match-best .643 from the floor to go with 10 team kills in another 25-8 set win.
- In the final set, the Lions and Dolphins fought for the momentum early in the set, but another scoring run for ENC took them from up a pair to a six-point advantage as they finished the straight sets win with 11 total team kills and a .182 percentage, taking the final set 25-18.
- For the Lions, Alejandro Garcia Fernandez (San Juan, P.R.) had a match-high eight kills, paired with a .583 attack percentage. First-year Jacob Zarges (Quincy, Mass.) finished with seven kills on .438 hitting from the floor.
- For the Dolphins, sophomore Kyle Thompson (Wantagh, N.Y.) led the team with three kills. Juniors Terence Strehle (Rockaway, N.Y.) and Samuel Martinez (Bronx, N.Y.) each finished with a pair of kills.
MATCH THREE: Emmanuel 3 – Mount Saint Vincent 0 (25-10, 25-14, 25-10 )
- In the opening set of the third match, the Saints took control of the play early, using a 14-2 scoring run to lead 20-6. Emmanuel hit a match-best .421 from the floor in the opening set, including 10 team kills, in the 25-10 set win.
- In the second set, the Dolphins trailed early but gathered momentum through the middle of the set to tie the second at 10-10. Later in the set and with the Saints now leading by two, Emmanuel surged to the finish line, scoring 10 of the set's final 11 points in the Saints 25-14 set two win.
- In the final set, the Saints led from the early going and used a 5-0 scoring run in the middle of the set to put plenty of distance on the Dolphins. The Saints hit .316 in the final set as a team, picking up the set win, 25-10.
- For the Saints, first-year Leonard Kim (Los Angeles, Calif.) finished with a career-high six kills. Senior Gary Randall (Essex Junction, Vt.), junior Patrick Mannion (New Boston, N.H.), and first-year Maximillian Olsen (Barnstable, Mass.) all added five kills.
- For the Dolphins, junior Kevin Erhand (Rockaway Beach, N.Y.) had a match-best seven kills. Junior Samuel Martinez (Bronx, N.Y.) had three kills on a team-high .286 from the floor. Sophomore Kyle Thompson (Wantagh, N.Y.) matched Martinez with three kills.
UP NEXT
- The Saints return to play on Tuesday evening as they head to Nichols College for a 7:00 p.m. match.
- The Lions travel north to Colby-Sawyer on Wednesday for a 7:00 p.m. match with the Chargers.
- The Dolphins break for over two weeks and head back home to host St. Joseph's of Brooklyn on March 1 at 7:00 p.m. in the Dolphins Skyline Conference opener.