AMCATS Drop Home Finale To Falcons, 3-0

Paxton, Mass. – The Anna Maria College men's volleyball team lost their final home contest of the 2014 season as they dropped three straight sets to visiting Albertus Magnus College, (25-14, 25-22, 25-19), in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference matchup on Thursday evening at Fuller Activities Center.  The AMCATS slide to 1-18 (0-14 GNAC) on the season, while the Falcons improve to 11-10 (5-9 GNAC).

For the AMCATS, senior Jonathan Gallardo (Marlborough, Mass.) led the offense with seven total kills.  Sophomore Matthew Kozlowski (Seymour, Conn.) dished out a team-high twelve assists while freshman Dylan Copeland (Haverhill, Mass.) notched a game-high six digs on defense.

Albertus Magnus freshman Raymond Torres (Catano, Puerto Rico) collected a match high twenty-three assists and freshman teammate Raul Rivera Rojas (Vega Baja, Puerto Rico) led the offense with eight kills.  Senior libero Douglas DeSousa (Danbury, Conn.) led the Falcons defense with five total digs.

The Falcons were able to take advantage of a few AMCAT errors to start the first set as they stormed out to an early 10-3 advantage.  Anna Maria coach Bryan Forrette called a timeout to get the squad back on track, and the offense responded.  Jonathan Gallardo had a monster kill following the break, and the AMCATS put together a 7-3 run, cutting the Falcons lead to 13-10.  This was the closest that Anna Maria would get as the Falcons responded big, going on a 12-4 run to close out the first set, 25-14.

The opening of the second set seemed like Déjà vu for the AMCATS, as the Falcons ripped off an early 10-3 run.  Albertus Magnus continued to put the pressure on Anna Maria, extending their lead to eight, with a 16-8 advantage.  A kill by AMCAT freshman Peter Griffenkranz (Deer Park, N.Y.) provided the offense with a little momentum as they were able to battle back, eventually tying the score at 19-19.  Much like the first set, the Falcons were able to regain their composure and put away the AMCATS in the tail end of the set.  A kill by Rivera Rojas gave Albertus Magnus a 25-22 win to close the second set. 

The AMCATS continued to find their rhythm throughout the match, putting together their best string of play in the third set.  Anna Maria held their largest lead of the night, 14-9, midway through the third set, which had the Falcons scrambling to call a timeout of their own.  Albertus went on a 6-1 run following the break, highlighted by three service aces from Raul Rivera Rojas.  With the match tied at 15, the Falcons offense remained hot, outscoring the AMCATS 10-4 to close out the third set, 25-19.

Anna Maria closes out their season on Saturday when they travel to Wentworth College for a GNAC tri-match.  They will battle the Rivier University Raiders at 1:00 p.m. and the Wentworth College Leopards at 3:00 p.m.