RAIDERS THWART SAINTS' CHAMPIONSHIP HOPES
March 27, 2010
NASHUA, N.H. - The 2nd-seeded Emmanuel Men's Volleyball Team defeated 3rd-seeded Lasell College, 3-1, in the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) tournament semifinals, before falling to top-seeded Rivier College, 3-0, in the tournament championship. The Saints posted a 30-25, 28-30, 30-16, 30-27 win over the Lasers to advance to the championship match. The host Raiders then topped the Saints in straight-sets, 30-25, 30-28, 30-26, winning their third-straight conference title.
Junior outside hitter Curtis Abram (San Luis Obispo, Calif.) led the way for Emmanuel in the semifinal with 25 kills and an incredible 7 aces. Senior outside hitter Michael Townsend (Beaverdam, Va.) added 13 kills, 10 digs and 4 aces, while junior Tyson Rietz (Granite Bay, Calif.) chipped in with 12 kills and 2 aces. Setters Taylor Lowe (Malibu, Calif.) and Nick Updike combined for 48 assists in the win.
Emmanuel's defense was led by Thomas McCaffrey (Massapequa, N.Y.), who tallied 6 total blocks. Lowe led the Saints' backrow with a team-high 11 digs.
Rivier defeated Emerson College in the other conference semifinal and the two top seeds advanced to battle in the final match of the day. Emmanuel and Rivier, which were ranked 10th and 11threspectively in the most recent AVCA national poll, were squaring off for the third time this season. The two teams had split previously, which each team winning on its home court.
Jared Andreozzi led the offense for the Raiders, finishing with 20 kills and only 1 hitting error for a .760 hitting percentage. Zach Hansen dished out 42 assists in the 3-0 victory and added 3 blocks and 3 digs to help out the defense. Middle hitter Matt Ferreira finished with 9 kills while outside hitter Steve Visentin put down 7 kills of his own.
McCaffrey was the only Emmanuel play to register double-figures in kills. He totaled 12 kills in 14 swings. Junior Matt Salvi (Trumbull, Conn.) and Rietz added 8 kills, while Abram and Townsend notched 7 kills apiece. Updike dished out 21 assists and junior Sean O'Connor (Hampstead, N.H.) added 13. McCaffrey also assisted on 4 blocks, while Abram picked up 2 solo blocks in the effort. Both McCaffrey and Abram were named to the All-Tournament Team for Emmanuel.
Emmanuel is now 26-9 on the season, with two extremely competitive non-conference matches left to play on the regular season schedule. The Saints will play at Harvard on March 30th and will then host Newbury College on April 6th. The two seniors (Towsend and Lowe) on the Emmanuel squad will be honored prior to the last home match of the season (4/6).
2010 GNAC Championship All-Tournament Team
MVP-Jared Andreozzi (Barrington, RI) - Rivier
Zach Hansen (Shelton, CT) - Rivier
Matt Ferreira (E. Providence, RI) - Rivier
Thomas McCaffrey (Massapequa, NY) - Emmanuel
Curtis Abram (San Luis Obispo, CA) - Emmanuel
Brendan McGourn (Southington, CT) - Lasell
Bay Scoggin (Dallas, TX) - Emerson