Men's Volleyball Comes from Behind to Take First Set, Wins Next Two for 3-0 Victory Over Elms

BOSTON – After falling behind in the first set, Emmanuel College Volleyball (9-6, 4-2 GNAC) stormed back to take the lead and did not look back. The Saints went on to take a come-from-behind first set victory and proceeded to control the next two sets, earning a 3-0 (25-21, 25-14, 25-17) Great Northeast Athletic Conference win over Elms College (3-15, 0-6 GNAC) on Wednesday night in the Jean Yawkey Center.

Kills from Algenis Sanchez (Guayama, P.R.) and Nicholas Uschmann (Agawam Mass.) followed by consecutive errors from the Saints allowed the visiting Blazers to develop a 6-2 advantage early in the matchup. After Emmanuel battled back to level the set at 13, Elms rattled off four of the next five points and force Saints Head Coach Bori May into a timeout. Out of the break, Michael Shelley (San Francisco, Calif.) rose up for a monster kill that sparked a run from the Saints. Emmanuel poured on an 11-4 run to end the set, earning a 25-21 first-set victory.

With the score locked at 9-9 midway through the second set, it was Shelley, again, who powered the Saints to the advantage. Shelley served up three consecutive aces after a Blazers error to give Emmanuel a 13-9 advantage. The home side would maintain control throughout the remainder of the set, taking a 2-0 match lead with a 25-14 second-set win.

After a kill from John Bellafronte (Enfield, Conn.) closed the Blazers' deficit to one at 11-10, Emmanuel surged for five straight points to take a six point edge. The run included yet another kill from Shelley along with one from Carlton Cummings (Plainsboro, N.J.). Emmanuel did not turn back after opening up their advantage, and it was Cummings, again, who rose up to secure the 25-16 third-set triumph and a 3-0 victory for the Saints.

Pedro De Jesus (East Hartford, Conn.) led the Elms attack with 10 kills on the night while Collin Liedke (Newington, Conn.) contributed 20 assists in the loss. Shelley finished with 20 kills followed by Cummings with nine for the Saints. Nick Sciabica (Floral Park, N.Y.) was the match-leader with seven digs while Dominic DeFerrari (Miami, Fla.) led all players with 36 assists in the win.

Elms will hit the road in their next matchup for a tri-match against the host, Nichols College, and Bard College on Saturday (3/16) at 2:00 P.M. and 4:00 P.M. Emmanuel returns to Andy Yosinoff Court on Saturday for a nonconference doubleheader with Fisher College at 10:00 A.M. and 12:00 P.M.