Blazers Split Home Opener

Chicopee, MA – Elms men's volleyball picked up their first GNAC win vs. Colby-Sawyer College (3-0) before losing a close match to non-conference Nichols College (1-3).

THE BASICS:

SCORE: Elms 3 | Colby-Sawyer 0 (25-16, 25-13, 25-12)

Nichols 3 | Colby-Sawyer 1 (24-26, 25-17, 25-12, 25-16)

Elms 1 | Nichols 3 (22-25, 22-25, 25-20, 23-25)

RECORDS: Elms (3-1, 1-0 GNAC), Nichols (2-1, 0-0 NECC), Colby-Sawyer (0-5, 0-2 GNAC) 

HOW IT HAPPENED:

Elms vs. Colby-Sawyer

Elms came out strong in the first set with a 6-0 lead from the service line from Luis Martinez (Bayamon, P.R.). A pair of kills from Pedro De Jesus (East Hartford, CT) sealed the first set 25-16 and gave the Blazers a 1-0 lead in the match. The second set saw the Blazers take another early lead and a pair of De Jesus kills put Elms up 11-6. A string of Charger errors and a pair of kills from Carlos Mercado (Barranquitas, P.R) and Martinez closed out the set 25-13. The Blazers went up 2-0 in the match. The Chargers would not go quietly and the Blazers saw themselves down 2-5. The Blazers answered with service run from Collin Liedke (Newington, CT) and a pair of kills from Mercado to give Elms a 9-6 advantage. With Liedke behind the service line, Elms closed out the set and match with a Martinez kill, a service ace, and a De Jesus kill to take the set 25-12 and the match 3-0. 

Nichols vs. Colby-Sawyer

A tight first set led to extra points as Colby-Sawyer took the first set 26-24 and went up 1-0 in the match. The second set remained close and saw Nichols pull away at 20-14. A Bison kill closed out the second set for Nichols 25-17 as they tied the match 1-1. A Bison service run opened up the 3rd set for Nichols 12-6 before a service ace closed out the set 25-12. Nichols went up 2-1 in the match. A mid-set service run gave Nichols a 16-9 advantage before a Charger error sealed the set and match for Nichols 25-16. Nichols won the match 3-1. 

Elms vs. Nichols

The first set saw Elms up early with a 10-6 lead following a pair of kills from Antonio Delgado Rolon (Aibonito, P.R.) and Moose Perry (Holyoke, MA). A service run for the Bison tied the set 12-12 and it remained a tight game before the Blazers saw themselves down 20-22. A pair of Bison errors and a De Jesus kill put the Blazers within 1 before a pair of Bison kills ended the set 22-25. Elms went down 0-1 in the match. Both teams traded points and saw themselves tied 5 times including at 17-17 in the second set. A pair of kills from Mercado put the Blazers at 19-21 before a pair of errors put the Blazers against set point (20-24). A pair of kills from Mercado and Delgado Rolon gave the Blazers some momentum before falling 22-25. Elms went down 0-2 in the match. The third set was again close before a string of Blazer kills gave Elms a 17-11 advantage. The Blazers closed out the set 25-20. Elms was down 1-2 in the match. The fourth set was another battle as the Blazers went up 10-8 with a Delgado Rolon ace and a Perry kill. A pair of Bison errors brought the Blazers within 1 late in the set at 22-23 before a kill from Nichols gave them match point. A kill from Mercado sent him behind the service line before Nichols called a double-timeout. Despite a strong effort and rally, the Blazers fell 23-25 and dropped the match 1-3. 

INSIDE THE NUMBERS:

Elms vs. Colby Sawyer

-Mercado led all players with 14 kills and 4 aces while also adding 6 digs, and 3 blocks. 

-Delgado Rolon led all players with 14 digs and added 5 kills and one ace. 

-The Blazers hit a match-high .438 in the third set and .322 for the match. 

Nichols vs. Colby-Sawyer

-Ray Wang led the Nichols offense with 13 kills and added 2 aces.

-Nick Martin led all players with 44 assists and added 4 kills, 1 ace, and 7 digs. 

-The Bison hit a match-high .545 in the 2nd set and .350 for the match. 

-Orlando Plagata led the Charger offense with 14 kills and added one ace and 9 digs. 

Elms vs. Nichols

-Mercado led the Blazers with 14 kills and added 5 assists, 1 ace, and 5 blocks. 

-Delgado Rolon led all players with 17 digs and added 7 kills and 3 aces. 

-Perry held the Blazer defense at the net with 6 blocks and added 8 kills. 

-The Blazers out-blocked the Bison 14:7

-Elms hit a match-high .258 in the third set and .146 for the match.

UP NEXT:

The Blazers are on the road for a match up at Springfield College on Tuesday February 1st at 7pm. 

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