Score: #10 Vassar College 3 – #9 Elmira College 1 [25-14, 20-25, 25-19, 25-22]
Score: #1 SUNY New Paltz 3 – #9 Elmira 0 [25-17, 25-23, 25-19]
Records: Elmira (20-9, 2-6 UVC), Vassar (21-5, 4-3 UVC), New Paltz (25-2, 7-0 UVC)
Location: Kenyon Hall – Poughkeepsie, NY
 
Poughkeepsie, NY -- The ninth-ranked Elmira College men's volleyball team began today's conference tri-match at Vassar College's Kenyon Hall with hopes of securing a UVC postseason berth. Unfortunately, Elmira's run of four consecutive UVC Tournament appearances came to end this afternoon, as the Soaring Eagles fell to 10th-ranked Vassar in four sets, before dropping a three-setter to top-ranked SUNY New Paltz. Elmira concludes its UVC schedule with a 2-6 record and finishes seventh in the conference standings.
 
Vassar set the tone early in the opening match of the day, defeating Elmira by 11 points, 25-14. The Soaring Eagles answered with a 25-20 win in the second set, with much of that success having to do with EC's impressive .435 attack percentage (14k-4e-23-ta). Four players logged three-or-more kills in the second set for Elmira, led by Mark Kawecki '17 and his four kills.
 
EC eyed a comeback win, but a pair of 3-0 runs by Vassar in the second half of the set proved to be too much for the Soaring Eagles to overcome, as the Brewers claimed the third by a 25-19 final. Vassar carried that momentum into the fourth, jumping out to a quick 16-7 lead. Elmira rallied later in the set, but the effort proved to be too little too late, as the Brewers won the set 25-22, sealing a four-set victory.
 
The second leg of today's matches pitted the Soaring Eagles against the nation's top team, SUNY New Paltz, a team that had won 23 straight entering today's tri-match. Elmira battled the Hawks, but the Purple and Gold came up short, as the Hawks picked up a three-set victory.
 
New Paltz rolled in the opening frame, claiming the first set 25-17. The second set was much more competitive, as EC led by as many as five points at 15-10; however, New Paltz won 10 of the next 14 points to take a 20-19 lead. New Paltz's one-point lead would eventually end in a 25-23 second-set win.
 
The third set was another tightly contested affair, as the Hawks led by just one point for the majority of the set. However, New Paltz utilized a 3-0 run late in the set to take control of the third at 20-16, which turned into a 25-19 win, sealing a straight-set victory for the Hawks.
  
Inside the Box Score (Vassar)

• Vassar was the more consistent team on offense, connecting on .261-percent of its attempts.
• Elmira hit .193 for the match.
• EC produced more kills than Vassar, 46-to-39.
• The Brewers logged nine service aces compared with Elmira's three.
• Blocks were also in favor of Vassar, 10-to-5.
• Erik Griffin '16 led all players with a match-high 19 kills.
• Adam Dake '19 orchestrated the EC attack with 24 assists, while Jeremy Best '19 added another 15.
• Griffin and Ryan Branigan '19 owned the team-lead in digs with six apiece.

 
Inside the Box Score (New Paltz)

• New Paltz held the edge in attack percentage, connecting on .446-percent of its attempts compared to EC's .243.
• The Hawks had more kills than the Soaring Eagles, 38-to-33.
• New Paltz logged nine service aces, while Elmira produced four.
• Total blocks were also in favor of New Paltz, 4-to-2.
• Griffin led all hitters with a match-high 17 kills and shared the match-high with three aces.
• Dake and Best registered double-digit assists with 18 and 11, respectively.
• Dake and Griffin shared the team-lead with four digs apiece.

 
News and Notes

• With today's loss to the Brewers, Elmira has been eliminated from UVC postseason contention.
• Dylan Kuhn '16 became the second player in program history to log 300 career blocks.
• Griffin produced his 16th consecutive match with double-digit kills.
• Griffin has recorded 10-or-more kills in 20-of-22 matches played this season.
• Dake has registered double-digit assists in three consecutive matches.

 
Up Next
Elmira plays in its home finale this Monday, March 28th, when the Purple and Gold host Juniata College in a 6:00 p.m. non-conference bout at Speidel Gymnasium.