Regis Captures Three-Set Win Over Men's Volleyball

Chris Kendrick (@CKendrick86)

CHICOPEE, Mass. – The Elms College men's volleyball team fell to visiting Regis College, 3-0 (25-11, 25-19, & 25-17), in a New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) battle at Picknelly Arena Saturday morning. The Blazers drop to 4-19 overall, and 1-9 in NECC play, while Regis improves to 10-14, and 6-4 on the season.

The Pride raced to an early 8-1 lead in the first set behind a pair of kills from freshman Brett Krahl (Santa Clarita, Calif.) and sophomore Sean Bisnett (Oxnard, Calif.). Regis senior Kerby Billy (Dorchester, Mass.) hammered home a kill to extend the Pride advantage to 11-3. The Blazers pulled to within five points, 14-9, following a pair of errors by Regis, but the Pride padded their lead with 10 consecutive points, capitalizing on seven Elms errors, to build a 24-10 lead. The Pride closed out the 25-11 win with a kill from sophomore Manny Santiago (Bristol, Conn.). 

The Blazers regrouped in the second set, trading points with the Pride, and a service ace from sophomore Joey Sirois (South Easton, Mass.) tied the match at 6-6. Tied at 9-9, Regis used kills from Krahl and sophomore Brandon Tordoff (Coventry, R.I.) to grab an 11-9 advantage. The Blazers remained within striking distance as a kill from junior Roger Conklin (Chicopee, Mass.) closed the gap to 14-12. The Pride roared ahead with 6-1 run to grab a 20-13 lead. Errors plagued the final points of the set with both teams combining for eight miscues as Regis claimed a 25-19 win.

In the third set, the Blazers took a 3-2 lead following a kill from sophomore Qua'Sean Crowe (Stamford, Conn.). Regis came back on Elms errors, and a back-to-back kills from Kirby handed the Pride an 8-5 advantage. The Blazers hung with the Pride and a kill from freshman Blake Fry (Natick Mass.) cut the Elms deficit to 9-7. Leading 11-9, Regis pulled away with 10-2 run over the next 12 points behind five attack errors by Elms, to grab a 21-11 advantage. Three straight errors by Regis energized Elms, but a kill from Krahl halted the Blazers momentum, followed by a kill from Santiago to send the Pride to a 25-17 win in the final set.

The Blazers had six players record a kill during the match, led by a team-high three kills and five digs from Fry. Conklin, junior Cristian Arroyo (Chicopee, Mass.), and freshman Kahlil Peters (Hartford, Conn.) each added two kills, while Peters doled out a team-high nine assists and Conklin and Peters had six digs apiece. Sophomore libero Austin DeCosmo (Southwick, Mass.) grabbed a team-high seven digs in the loss.

Krahl powered the Regis attack with a match-best nine kills and three solo blocks. Tordoff, Husher, and Billy knocked five kills each, while Hushed dished out a game-high 16 assists with a match-high three service aces. Sophomore Joe Hanrahan (Coventry, R.I.) had 13 assists, and sophomore libero Jon Fuentes (Downey, Calif.) snared a game-high 15 digs. 

The Blazers will return to the court in their home finale against Southern Vermont Wednesday night at 7:00 p.m. The Pride hosts Lesley in their home finale Monday evening at 6:00 p.m.

ELMS VOLLEYBALL