Men’s Volleyball Unable to Put Away Saints in GNAC Contest

WESTON, Mass. – For the second time in four days, Regis College took two of the first three sets from Emmanuel College, but this time the Saints were able to rally to defeat the Pride, 3-2 (20-25, 25-18, 20-25, 25-22, 15-13), Tuesday night in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference men's volleyball match at Higgins Court.

Matt Ferrara (Sandown, N.H.) led the Pride with 18 kills to go along with two service aces and eight digs, while Josh Nolen (Falls Church, Va.) finished with 11 kills, six digs, and four total blocks. Tyrell Bucasas (Waialua, Hawaii) earned 24 assists and seven digs, Brendan Lam (Rockville, Md.) notched a double-double with 19 assists and 15 digs, and Marcello Cappuccio (Scotch Plains, N.J.) added 14 defensive digs.

Early in the first set, Regis put together an 8-2 scoring run, capped by a solo block and a kill from Nolen, to open an 11-6 advantage. The Pride would keep the Saints at arm's length the rest of the set, clinching it on kills by Brendan Carroll (Natick, Mass.) and Ferrara.

Emmanuel scored the first three points of the second set on two kills by Jyles Amirault and one kill from Louis Da Silva, but the Pride would respond with a 6-1 scoring run, capped by consecutive blocks involving Kostea Andreenko (Marstons Mills, Mass.), to pull ahead, 8-6. The Saints would retake the lead with three straight points, followed by five unanswered points later in the second set to open a 17-12 lead. Amirault closed out the set with a kill to tie the match at 1-1.

Consecutive kills by Nolen opened the third set, and the Pride would eventually extend their lead to 12-4 on a kill and a service ace by Ferrara as well as kills by Joseph Perez (Miami, Fla.) and Andreenko. The Saints went on a 9-3 scoring run, including two kills by Amirault and a service ace each from Ryan Cave and Josh McDonald to close to within two at 15-13. Regis held off the Emmanuel rally, finishing the third set on a solo block by Nolen.

The fourth set featured eight ties and four lead changes before the Saints went ahead for good on four straight points thanks to two kills by Amirault and one kill apiece from Da Silva and Roman Fabrizio. The Pride closed to within one at 21-20 on a Nolen service ace, but Emmanuel responded with four of the final six points of the set, capped by a kill from Daniel Keyes.

The Saints took an early three-point lead in the fifth set before two errors and a service ace by Lam tied the set at 9-9. The teams traded points until Emmanuel pulled ahead by two at 14-12 on a Regis service error and a kill by Leonard Kim. Ferrara extended the deciding set with a kill, but the Saints completed their comeback with a kill by Keyes.

Amirault led all players with 27 kills, plus he collected 10 digs for a double-double, while Keyes finished with 11 kills, including four kills in the final set. Fabrizio accumulated 43 assists, Cave led his team with two service aces to go along with 11 digs, and Tyler Behsman moved into the libero position after the first set, leading everyone in the match with 18 defensive digs.

Regis College (12-13, 7-6 GNAC) hosts Lasell University Thursday, March 31, starting at 6 p.m. at Higgins Court. Emmanuel College (13-12, 6-7 GNAC) welcomes nationally ranked Wentworth to its home court Thursday for a 7 p.m. start.