Men's Volleyball Battles Daniel Webster to Five Set Loss

Chris Kendrick (@CKendrick86)

NASHUA, N.H. – The Elms College men's volleyball team rallied from a two-set deficit to force five sets against host Daniel Webster College in a New England Collegiate Conference match at Mario Vagge Gymnasium Saturday afternoon. The Blazers fell to the Eagles in five sets, 21-25, 21-25, 25-22, 25-19, 7-15, to drop to 3-16 overall, and 0-6 in NECC play. Daniel Webster improved to 3-9, and 3-4 on the season.

Elms freshman Gabriel Reis Levy (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) powered the Blazers, posting career-highs in kills (20) and digs (24). Senior Kevin Welsh (Wilbraham, Mass.) dished out a season-high 39 assists, while sophomore Qua'Sean Crowe (Stamford, Conn.) notched a season-high eight kills with four digs and three blocks. Junior Roger Conklin (Chicopee, Mass.) grabbed 10 digs, and freshman Blake Fry (Natick, Mass.) tallied seven kills with nine digs.

Daniel Webster senior Joel Hendrix (Kane'ohe, Hawaii) led the Eagles with a game-high 26 kills with 10 digs. Junior Tommy Reyes (Providence, R.I.) recorded 10 kills, eight digs, six aces and four assists, while junior Ryan Howdeshell (Fairbanks, Alaska) registered 37 assists with 10 digs and five aces in the win.

In the first set, the Eagles cruised to an early 7-3 lead behind four kills from Hendrix. The Blazers trimmed their deficit on DWC errors, but a trio of kills from Hendrix gave the Eagles a 10-7 advantage.  Four straight errors from Daniel Webster knotted the set at 15-15. The teams traded points with a pair of kills from Reyes staking the Eagles to a 20-18 lead. The Eagles capitalized on four Blazer errors down the stretch to pick up the 25-21 win.

Daniel Webster took a 6-2 lead in the second set as Reyes recorded three service aces. The Blazers pulled within a point, 8-7, on a kill from Reis Levy, but the Eagles the rebuilt an 18-10 lead on a 10-3 run over the next 13 points. Elms mounted a comeback effort on errors by the Eagles, followed by a pair of aces from Fry and kills from Levy, to make it a 22-20 game. An error from Reyes put the Blazers within a point, 22-21, but Daniel Webster closed the match on back-to-back service aces from Howdeshell, giving the Eagles a 2-0 advantage.

In the third set, the Blazers grabbed a 6-3 lead on kills from Reis Levy, Fry and junior Cristian Arroyo (Chicopee, Mass.). Elms doubled up the Eagles, 8-4, on back-to-back kills from Crowe, eventually extending their lead to 12-7. Daniel Webster chipped their margin one point, 12-11, until errors rebuilt a 16-12 lead for Elms. The Eagles took control as Hendrix rattled off four consecutive kills to put DWC up 18-17. Back-to-back service aces from Elms sophomore Austin DeCosmo (Southwick, Mass.) put the Blazers back on top, 20-18. A kill from Reis Levy gave Elms a 22-21 lead, followed by a pair of errors from Reyes to make it a 24-21 game. Reis Levy capped off the victory with a smash to give Elms the 25-22 win.

Elms took an early advantage in the fourth set, securing a 6-2 lead on a kill from Reis Levy. Trailed 9-7, the Eagles pulled ahead of the Blazers with a four straight points to take an 11-9 lead. The teams traded points down the stretch, and a kill from Fry gave Elms a 19-17 advantage. Leading 22-19, the Blazers closed out the set with four straight points, featuring a pair of kills from Reis Levy, to force the fifth set.

Following suit with the previous two sets, Elms grabbed a 6-2 lead after back-to-back errors from Hendrix. A kill from Reis Levy pushed the Blazers advantage to 7-4, but the Eagles capitalized on four Elms as part of a 7-0 run that put DWC up 11-7. Welsh delivered a kill for the Blazers to make it 11-8, but the Eagles closed the door on Elms with a 4-0 run to claim victory with a 15-7 fifth set win.

The Blazers will return to action with an NECC road test at Regis College Tuesday evening at 7:00 p.m. Daniel Webster hosts Newbury in NECC action Tuesday night at 7:00 p.m.

ELMS VOLLEYBALL