LASERS DROP IN THREE TO RIVIER

Newton, Mass. -- Rivier College swept Lasell in three sets tonight in GNAC men's volleyball action. The Raiders remain at the top of the league with a 4-0 GNAC record, while Lasell evens out at 2-2 in the conference so far this season.

Lasell's Andy Cass (Wakefield, RI) played extremely well for the Lasers in the match, making smart decisions on each attack to produced 12 kill on 19 attempts.  Cass also picked up four digs for the home team in the contest. Brendan McGourn (Southington, Conn.) also put in a strong performance for the Lasers, distributing 39 assists and picking up five digs and one solo block.

Matt Ferreira (Lincoln, RI) was a threat in the middle all evening for the Raiders, putting down 14 total kills in the match, and hitting 48%. Rivier's Zach Hansen (Shelton, Conn.) moved his hitters constantly throughout the match, giving Jared Andreozzi (Barrington, RI) swings on the outside and opposite for a total of 14 kills.

Game one was a battle of the middle hitters as Scott Wright (Salem, NH) and Ferreira were dominant for the Raiders and Dustin Foster (Ashford, Conn.) and Dan Rogers (Belchertown, Mass.) were leaders for Lasell.  The Raiders went ahead initially, but the Lasers kept in step.  Rivier went on short but significant runs, while the Lasers would score only one or two points consecutively, giving the Raiders the edge to pull away with a 30-24 first set win.

Rivier opened with a 3-0 run in the second frame, but an overpass kill by Joseph Lipski (Burlington, Conn.) started Lasell on track to get ahead.  The lasers went up 8-4 before the Raiders came back to tie the game at 10-all and then took the lead back with a quick middle attack by Ferreira. The visitors held onto that edge and made a final push with a 7-0 run to reach game point, and take the win 30-20.

Lasell came out strong in the third set, taking a 9-5 lead, capped by a line shot kill by Dave Rogers (Belchertown, Mass.).  The Raiders chipped back, and tied the game for the first time at thirteen, however, the Lasers regained their lead once again off a roll shot by Cass over Rivier's block.  

Rivier tied the game for the second time at 24 points when Alex Xenidis (Shelton, Conn.) closed in on a single block, then tied the game for the third time at 26-all with a service ace by Hansen.  The Raiders went ahead and came up with a game point at 29-26, but Dave Rogers put down his sixth match kill to stop the Raiders from ending the match.  However, on the next serve, Chris Deluca (East Moriches, NY) went in for the final attack and finished a 30-27 set.

Middle's Foster and Dan Rogers finished with 8 and 5 kill respectively, and Dave Rogers added six digs to his 6 kills.  Trevor Foster (Ashford, Conn.) stepped in during the third set to go 4 for 4 in the middle, and Lipski closed out the evening with a team-high seven digs.

Hansen ended the night with 40 assisted balls for Rivier, and the Raiders libero Kyle O'Neill (Long Beach, NY) picked up 11 digs for the visitors. 

The Lasers are off until Friday, when they pick up another Great Northeast Athletic Conference match against Johnson & Wales University.  The Lasers and the Wildcats face off at 7:00 p.m.