MVB: Lasell drops tri-match at Hunter College

NEW YORK, N.Y. – The Lasell College men's volleyball team suffered a pair of losses Saturday at Hunter College, falling to the host Hawks, 3-0, and #3-ranked SUNY New Paltz, 3-1, at the Hunter Sportsplex.

The Lasers dropped the opening match to Hunter by set scores of 25-12, 25-17 and 25-21. Lasell came right back and took the third set from New Paltz, 25-21, but lost the other sets by scores of 25-15, 25-14 and 25-21.

Lasell completes the weekend with an overall record of 3-6, while Hunter evened its mark at 3-3 and nationally-ranked New Paltz improved to 7-1.

The Lasers will be back in action next Thursday, February 14, with a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) match at Emerson College 7:00 p.m.

Hunter 3, Lasell 0

Senior Andy Henriquez (Lawrence, Mass.) led the Lasers with six kills, while junior Scott Sterenberg (Oceanside, N.Y.) made five kills but was saddled with seven errors. Sophomore Dillon DeSouza (Enfield, Conn.) chipped in with four kills, and senior Nate Gallo (North Providence, R.I.) finished with 11 set assists.

Sophomore Aaron Waitekus (Norwood, Mass.) led the net players with four blocks, while senior Jordan Aprea (Newington, Conn.) and Sterenberg made 11 and 10 digs, respectively.

The first set was close early on, with Lasell trailing just 12-9 about halfway through. It was a 15-11 Hunter lead when Hawks caught fire and won 10 of the next 11 points to close out the set.

The Lasers won the first four points of the second set and held an early lead, including scores of 10-8 and 11-10. Hunter won five consecutive points to take its first lead, 15-11, and maintained a narrow margin before pulling away to a 25-17 verdict.

Lasell had small leads in the first half of the third set, with the Hawks remaining close and tying the score at 9-9 and 10-all, the seventh deadlock of the set. The score was within three points the rest of the set, with three more tie scores. Hunter took the lead for good with four consecutive points after a 16-all tie, and then posted three in a row after Lasell pulled to within one point at 21-20.

SUNY New Paltz 3, Lasell 1

Sophomore Conor Leary-Watson (Bethany, Conn.) was the top hitter for the Lasers, posting eight kills and a .467 attacker percentage (8-1-15). Henriquez finished with 18 set assists; Aprea made seven digs; and Waitekus had four kills and three blocks.

New Paltz used an early rally to pull out to a 10-5 lead in the first set. Lasell stayed within striking distance, trailing 12-8, but the Hawks put together seven consecutive points to increase the margin to 19-8, and went on to win the set, 25-15.

Lasell stayed within two or three points for the first half of the second set, but New Paltz pulled away to a 17-10 advantage. The Lasers got back to within six points a couple times, but the Hawks finished off the set, 25-14.

A determined Laser squad took a lead in the third set, and had a four-point margin at 13-9 and 14-10.  Lasell opened up a large lead, 20-12, before taking the set, 25-15.

The fourth set had no more than a one-point difference most of the way, with 15 ties, the last coming at 18-18. New Paltz scored four in a row to pull ahead, and Lasell answered with two points, but the Hawks proved too strong and finished off the set, 25-21, and the match, 3-1.

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