BROOKLINE, Mass. – Regis College picked up a 3-2 victory over Newbury College in New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) men's volleyball action on Saturday afternoon. First year outside hitter Sean Bisnett (Oxnard, Calif.) registered a .326 attack percentage, notching 20 kills on 46 attempts with just five errors to lead the Pride to the program's first victory over the Nighthawks.
Regis withstood a late Newbury charge in set one to take the early match advantage with a 28-26 win in game one. On the edge of defeat, trailing 24-20, junior outside hitter Chi Yin Li (Framingham, Mass.) ignited a 5-0 run to take a 25-24 lead. But the lead was short live as the Pride answered. Zach Sindoni (Haverhill, Mass.) recorded an outstanding .455 attack percentage, notching a set-high six kills on 11 attempts, while Bisnett followed up with five kills.
Down 0-1 did not affect the Nighthawks as they responded with a quick 25-16 victory in game two. Hitting a solid .323 as a team the second set, Li and senior outside hitter Jake Powell (Salinas, Calif.) paved the way notching four kills, while first year right side Stephen Watson (Marina, Calif.) was a force at the net tallying three of his four total blocks.
All square, heading into the third set, it appeared as momentum had changed addresses. The Nighthawk offense remained red-hot, recording their best attack percentage of the afternoon, hitting .400 with 13 kills as a team, to edge past the Pride, 25-22 in game three and take a commanding 2-1 lead. Powell came alive and was nearly perfect from the floor registering six kills on nine attempts.
With their backs against the wall, the Pride answered the Nighthawks' best attack percentage of the day by hitting their best in a must-win, game four. Sophomore middle blocker Joe Coye (Plaistow, N.H.) and Sindoni were flawless from the floor, registering six and five kills, respectively, as the Pride hit an impressive .433 with 15 kills on 30 attempts and just two errors as a team, en route to the 25-20 win to knot up the match at 2-2.
Trailing 6-4 early in the rubber game of the final game, first year middle blocker Billy Stephen (Windermere, Fla.) sparked a 4-0 run with one of his 11 kills on the day to take an 8-6 lead and NC looked to re-gain the momentum. But the Pride answered with a 4-1 run of their own, capped off by a solo block from Bisnett, to re-take the lead, 10-9 and they never looked back to claim the fifth set, 15-11 and the victory.
Newbury falls to 5-16 and 2-6 in the conference while Regis climbs over .500 improving to 9-8 and 2-4 in NECC action. The Pride will be back in action on Monday March 24th when they travel to Cambridge, Mass. for an 8:00 p.m. tilt against Lesley University.
Release courtesy of Newbury College Sports Information