Men's Volleyball: Lasers extend win streak with victories over No. 5 Wentworth and Elms

NEWTON, Mass. – The Lasell University men's volleyball team defeated No. 5-ranked Wentworth, 3-1, and Elms, 3-0, in Great Northeast Athletic Conference matchups Saturday during a tri-match in the Athletic Center.

At the end of the tri-match, Lasell sits at 8-5 overall and 4-0 in the GNAC, winning six straight matches and eight of its last nine. Wentworth is 11-2 overall and 4-1 in the conference, while Elms is 6-6 overall and 3-2 in the GNAC.

Match 1: Lasell 3, Wentworth 1

The match featured two sides that were evenly matched and little separated the two during the match.

In the first set, Lasell grabbed a quick three-point lead through the first nine points, getting kills from sophomore Ryan Fuller and junior Jan Baranowski. Wentworth closed quickly, scoring three of the next four points and getting two kills from sophomore Jacob LaBouliere. Lasell pushed the lead to six points at 19-13. A service ace by junior Colin Stockton and a kill by LaBouliere trimmed the Lasers' lead down to three. The Lasers closed out the set only allowing the Leopards to score two more times over the final eight points, taking set one, 25-18.

There was little to separate the two sides in the second set, as through the first 22 points both sides were knotted at 11-11. Over the next nine points, the Leopards were able to take a one-point lead, getting kills from juniors Hunter Oshman and Alex McLane. Wentworth started pulling away, taking a five-point lead, while only needing five more points to take the set. The Lasers did not go down without a fight, getting the lead down to two before a kill by McLane evened the match up at one set apiece.

Set three followed suit from the previous two, as a kill by freshman Jordan Shinaut gave the Lasers a two-point lead at 12-10. Kills by Oshman and McLane got the game even at 12 and the Leopards grabbed the lead on a block by McLane and graduate student David Marsh. Wentworth had a chance to take the set up 24-23, but Lasell got a kill from Shinaut to force extra points. Lasell had a chance to win at 25-24, but a kill from Oshman tied the game up once more. The Lasers were able to finish off the set, taking the lead on a Wentworth attack error and took set three on a kill by freshman Theo Zaharewicz.

The Leopards took the early lead in the fourth set, jumping out to a 10-8 lead on an ace by senior Connor Adams. The Lasers cut the deficit and eventually took the lead at 14-13 on a kill by Baranowski. The Lasers led, 18-15, before they took over the final set, going on a three-point run with two kills by junior Brenden Joyce and a block by Joyce. Another kill by Joyce gave the Lasers a five-point advantage, and then Marsh got himself a kill for the Leopards to cut the lead to four. The Lasers scored the final three points to put away the nationally ranked Leopards, 25-18.

LaBouliere led the match with 22 kills for the Leopards and Oshman was also in double figure kills with 12. Adams led the game with 45 assists.

Shinaut had 14 kills for the Lasers and Joyce tallied 11 kills. Tucker Merritt had nine kills, and Garcia had five kills, eight digs and 34 assists. Freshman Alex Weinhaus led the Lasers with nine digs.

Match 2: Lasell 3, Elms 0

The Lasers got off to a hot start in the first set, scoring eight of the first 10 points and getting three kills from freshman Dexter Thomas. Two kills by Baranowski and a service ace by Fuller gave the Lasers an eight-point lead through the first 16 points. Two service aces by Baranowski and kills from Joyce and Thomas spurred a 5-0 run and gave the Lasers a 17-5 advantage on the scoreboard. Elms fought back, scoring seven of the next eight to reduce the Laser lead to 18-12. Two kills from senior Pedro De Jesus and a kill by senior Carlos Mercado closed the gap to four. Four was as close as the Lasers let Elms get, as a kill from Joyce ended set one, 25-20.

Set two had a much more even start than the first set with each side scoring seven points out of the first 14. Two service aces by Fuller and a block by Baranowski and Garcia gave the Lasers some breathing room at 10-7. Elms had a strong answer, scoring 5-of-6 to get the deficit down to 15-14. Lasell turned it up from there, scoring five of the next six points, earning a 20-15 cushion. A kill by Baranowski ended set two, 25-19.

Set three was all Lasers from the first serve, as they held a 7-2 lead following a service ace by junior Riley Grenier. Two service aces by Garcia and a kill by Shinaut grew the lead to eight points. From that point on the Lasers scored 11 of the last 17 points to win set three by double figures, 25-12.

Junior Colin Liedke was the standout for the Blazers, recording 17 digs in the match.

Sinaut lead the game with 12 kills, Joyce added eight kills and five digs and Baranowski had seven kills, to go along with four service aces. Garcia had 29 assists, along with five digs and five block assists.

The Lasers will be back in action on Saturday, Feb. 26, when they travel to Elms to play in a tri-match. They will face Elms in a GNAC clash at 1 p.m., and then Elizabethtown in a non-conference match at 3 p.m.

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