Men’s Volleyball Drops Pair in Season Ending Tri- Match

Boston, Mass. – The Wentworth Institute of Technology men's volleyball team swept a Great Northeast Athletic Conference tri-match as the Leopards defeated fifth-ranked Rivier (3-1) and Anna Maria (3-0). Rivier beat Anna Maria 3-0 in the middle match of the day.

The victory over Rivier snaps a 23-match losing streak for Wentworth as it's the first win since March 23, 2000 against the Raiders.  It is also the first win for the Black & Gold against a ranked opponent since they beat No. 15 MIT on January 24, 2001.

Wentworth finishes the regular season with a program-best record of 25-7 (14-2). Rivier is 27-6 (15-1), and Anna Maria finishes its first season at 1-20 (0-16).

Match #2:  Rivier 3, Anna Maria 0
Rivier jumped out to a 10-6 advantage in the opening frame behind strong offensive efficiency. After an Anna Maria timeout the Raiders took four of the next five points to extend their lead to 14-7.

Sophomore Mike Hadder (Yucaipa, Calif.) finished a kill and upped the Raider lead to 19-11. The AMCATS added two points but Rivier finished on a 6-0 run to win the set 25-13.

The Raiders forced a timeout with a 6-0 spurt to start the second set. After the timeout, Anna Maria got on the board but Rivier's Matt Tutino (Manorville, N.Y.) finished from the middle to make the score 7-1. The AMCATS added two to their tally before Rivier responded with two of their own. With the score 10-4, Brendan Tutino (Manorville, N.Y.) beat the AMCAT defense to extend the Rivier lead to 11-4.

Rivier continued their dominance in the middle stages of the match by going on an 8-4 run, making the score 19-8. Freshman Jonathan Alicea (Feeding Hills, Mass.) blocked a Raider kill attempt to make the score 19-9, but a Rivier kill followed by a Matt Tutino ace extended the lead to 21-9. Following an Anna Maria timeout, Rivier finished the match on a 4-1 run and took the set 25-10.

The teams split the first fourteen points of the match and were all square at seven. Rivier then took the next five points to take a 12-7 lead. The Raiders then went on a 7-1 run and extended their lead to 19-8. After an Anna Maria timeout, River took six of the last eight points to end the set 25-10.

Rivier hit .470 as a team in the sweep and we led by Brendan Tutino's eight kills, five digs, and three block assists. Freshman Ian Wolski (Westfield, Mass.) added eight kills and three aces while, Hadder tallied seven kills and seven digs. Freshmen setters Matthew Ortiz (Los Angeles, Calif.) and Matt LaSance (Madison, Conn.) combined for 34 assists in the match.

Gavyn Torres (Providence, R.I.) hit .556 for the match with six kills on nine attempts. Freshman Ty Discoe (Pittsfield, Mass.) added two kill, while Matthew Kozlowski (Seymour, Conn.) had three assists and three digs.

Match #3:  Wentworth 3, Anna Maria 0
Anna Maria took the first three points of the opening set but the Leopards took the next three and the teams were locked at three. The AMCATS then went on a 7-4 spurt to take a 10-7 lead but Mann finished a kill and got the Leopards back within two. Anna Maria kept their lead until the Leopards tied it at 13 on a Mike Buonincontra (Shelton, Conn.) kill.

The Black & Gold then went on a 7-2 run to force an Anna Maria timeout with the score 20-15. The run continued after the stoppage and the Leopards finished the set with a 25-17 victory.

Wentworth started hot and scored the first six points of the second set. Their overall execution continued and they extended their lead to 12-2 which forced a timeout. Freshman Alex Potts (Niverville, N.Y.) stepped to the service line and guided his team to six straight points to increase the lead to 18-2. The Leopards would then finish the set on a 7-3 run and win set 25-5.

The final frame began with the Leopards taking an 8-5 lead. Anna Maria tied the match at 10 on an ace by freshman Dalton Gill (Florida, N.Y.). Wentworth then took the next two points to take a 12-10 advantage. A 6-3 spurt extended the Leopard lead to 18-13, which forced an AMCAT timeout. Wentworth finished the set on another 7-3 run and won 25-16.

The Leopards hit .372 for the match with 38 kills on 78 total attacks. Sophomore Bill Shimkus (Sudbury, Mass.) led Wentworth with 28 assists; he added two aces, two digs, four block assists. Freshman Elijah Egalite (Bayonne, N.J.) had nine kills, Potts had seven kills on 11 swings (.545) and Buonincontra finished with seven kills on twelve swings with two digs.

Freshman Peter Griffenkranz (Deer Park, N.Y.) led the AMCATS with six kills and eight digs. Classmate Dylan Copeland (Haverhill, Mass.) chipped in five kills on 18 swings, with eight digs and an ace. Senior Jonathan Gallardo (Marlborough, Mass.) had three kills and two blocks in the loss.

Wentworth and Rivier both earned first round byes in the GNAC tournament and will both host semi-final matches on Thursday April 10, 2014.