First Set Comeback Leads to Saints Sweep of Regis

BOSTON – Saints Men's Volleyball (6-5, 2-2 GNAC) handed Regis College (5-6, 3-1 GNAC) their first Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) loss of the season with a 3-0 (25-23, 25-18, 25-18) win Saturday afternoon on Andy Yosinoff Court. After erasing a nine-point first set deficit, the Saints took the lead and did not trail for the remainder of the match to secure the sweep.

With the two sides knotted at 7-7 early in the first set, Regis exploded on an 8-1 run to take a 16-8 advantage. The lead would grow to 19-10 before a kill from Michael Shelley (San Francisco, Calif.) began an 8-0 run to bring the Saints within one. Moments later, a kill from Aiden McGowan (Marston Mills, Mass.) completed the Saints comeback, giving the home side a 21-20 advantage and their first lead of the day. Emmanuel was able to hang on to their narrow lead as another Michael Shelley kill secured a 25-23 first set victory for the Saints.

The Saints began the second set looking to continue the momentum they developed in the first set. With the Pride trailing by a point, Emmanuel embarked on a 7-1 run to open up 12-5 advantage. Despite efforts to close the defecit from the visitors, Regis was unable to come within any less than three. Once again, Shelley was the man who stepped up for the Saints with three kills in the final four points of the set. Emmanuel went on to take a 2-0 match lead with a 25-18 second set victory.

A 7-0 run to start the third set put the Saints in position to secure the conference sweep over Regis. The visitors, however, refused to go down without a fight. An ace from Brandon Valdes (Miami, Fla.) cut the Saints lead to just a point at 17-16. Emmanuel refused to surrender the lead as the Pride were unable to level the score or take a lead in their effort to extend the match. Back-to-back Regis errors concluded a 25-21 third set victory and a 3-0 (25-23, 25-18, 25-21) conference win for the Saints.

Michael Shelley finished with 15 kills to go along with five aces and five digs for the Saints. Dominic DeFerrari (Miami, Fla.) added a match-best 32 assists in the win. It was DeFerrari's fourth match of the season with at least 30 assists. Regis was led by Joseph Perez (Miami, Fla.) with nine kills and Alessandro DiPaola (Newington, Conn.) with 21 assists in the loss.

Up next, Regis will host Fisher College in a nonconference matchup Friday (2/23) at 4:00 P.M. Emmanuel will also host Fisher in nonconference play in their next match, scheduled for Wednesday (2/21) at 7:00 P.M.