WESTON, Mass. - For the second time in five days, Regis College defeated Elms College, but the Pride could not complete a comeback against Emmanuel College, resulting in a split of the Pride's two matches during Saturday's Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) men's volleyball tri-match hosted by Elms at the Maguire Center.
Regis 3, Elms 0 (25-16, 25-19, 25-17)
Joseph Perez (Miami, Fla.) led the Pride with 14 kills, plus he earned two service aces and six digs, while John Nangle (Lowell, Mass.) finished with 12 kills, five digs, and three total blocks. Tyrell Bucasas (Waialua, Hawaii) dished out 41 assists, Marcello Cappuccio (Scotch Plains, N.J.) contributed 11 digs, and Orlando Plagata (Los Angeles, Calif.) paced Regis with 13 digs to go along with eight kills.
Elms (3-18, 2-6 GNAC) took an early 3-2 lead in the opening set thanks in part to a kill and a service ace from Jairam Rodriguez, but Regis responded with five unanswered points, led by Perez with his two aces, to pull ahead, 7-3. The Blazers would stay close to the Pride, cutting their deficit to three points at 19-16 on a kill by Ryan Perry, but Regis closed out the first set with six straight points, capped by kills from Francesco Buanne (Caserta, Italy) and Plagata.
Regis took the lead early in the second set, establishing a 13-9 advantage on a solo block by Nangle. Elms pulled into a 14-14 tie thanks to a 5-1 scoring run and eventually took an 18-17 lead before the Pride put together an 8-1 scoring run to close out the second set, led by Perez and Nangle with three kills apiece.
After the Blazers scored the first two points of the third set, Regis went on a 6-1 scoring run, featuring consecutive service aces from Bucasas. Elms tied the set seven times, the final time at 14-14, before the Pride took control with an 11-3 scoring run, led by Perez with five kills and a block assist, to clinch the set and the match.
Rodriguez led the Blazers with 10 kills, plus he notched 10 digs for a double-double along with two service aces. Rafa Artero paced Elms at the net with two solo blocks, and Collin Liedke collected a team-high 12 digs to lead the home team defensively.
Emmanuel 3, Regis 1 (25-20, 25-19, 19-25, 25-19)
Perez again led the Pride offense with 18 kills and a .300 hitting percentage, plus he collected six digs and three total blocks. Defensively, Plagata and Cappuccio paced Regis with 11 digs apiece.
Emmanuel (13-9, 6-3 GNAC) raced out to a 5-1 lead in the first set, and then consecutive kills from Josh McDonald helped the Saints extend that advantage to 11-3. After a block by McDonald and Trey Guest brought about set point for the Saints at 24-14, the Pride rattled off six straight points, led by Plagata with two blocks and a kill, but Guest and McDonald connected on another block to clinch the set for the Saints.
The Saints slowly pulled ahead in the second set, eventually taking a 19-13 lead after a kill by Jyles Amirault that forced a Regis timeout. The two teams basically traded points the rest of the set, with Emmanuel closing it out thanks to two kills by Michael Shelley.
The third set featured 15 ties and eight lead changes as the teams battled back-and-forth. A kill by Amirault put Emmanuel on top, 18-16, but Regis responded with a 9-1 scoring run to close out the set and extend the match, including consecutive service aces by Buanne and led by Perez with four kills.
Regis scored the first three points of the fourth set, starting with a block by Buanne and Nangle as well as a kill from Bucasas. Emmanuel responded with four unanswered points of its own, led by a kill and a service ace from Amirault.
In a set featuring eight ties and five lead changes, the Saints took the lead for good on consecutive blocks by the duo of Guest and Louis Da Silva. Roman Fabrizio notched consecutive service aces to bring about match point, and Emmanuel would clinch the set and the match on a Regis service error.
Shelley led the Emmanuel offense with 15 kills, followed closely by Guest with 14 kills as Fabrizio dished out 42 assists. Fabrizio also collected 12 digs for a double-double, Amirault finished with nine kills and 12 digs, and Nick Sciabica led the Saint backline with 13 defensive digs to go along with seven assists.
Regis College (8-13, 3-6 GNAC) travels to Franklin, Mass., to take on Dean College Tuesday, March 28, starting at 7 p.m. The Pride then host Lasell University Wednesday, March 29, beginning at 7 p.m. at Higgins Court.