Ryan McDonough
0
Sage SAGE 5-5
3
Winner Elmira ELMIRA 4-10
Sage SAGE
5-5
0
Final
3
Elmira ELMIRA
4-10
Winner
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 F
Sage SAGE 16 22 16 (0)
Elmira ELMIRA 25 25 25 (3)
3
Winner Lasell LAS 13-1
0
Elmira ELMIRA 4-11
Winner
Lasell LAS
13-1
3
Final
0
Elmira ELMIRA
4-11
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 F
Lasell LAS 25 25 25 (3)
Elmira ELMIRA 13 15 14 (0)

Game Recap: Men's Volleyball |

Men's Volleyball Knocks Off Sage, Splits Final Day of Home Invitational

Score: Elmira College 3, The Sage Colleges 0 (25-16, 25-22, 25-16)
Score: No. 15 Lasell College 3, Elmria College 0 (25-13, 25-15, 25-14)
Records: Elmira (4-11), Lasell (14-1), Sage (6-5)
Location: Elmira, N.Y. - Speidel Gymnasium

ELMIRA, N.Y. -- The Elmira College men's volleyball team defeated The Sage Colleges in straight sets to open the second day of the EC Invitational, before falling to 15th-ranked Lasell College in the nightcap at Speidel Gymnasium on Saturday afternoon.

The Soaring Eagles carried the momentum from two strong offensive offenses on the first day of their home tournament into Saturday's opening match against the Gators, who will join EC as members of the United Volleyball Conference next season. Not only was the .312 attack percentage a new season high for the Purple and Gold, but the 36 kills are the most for the team in a three-set match this season. Elmira began the afternoon with a near-perfect performance in the first set, as the Soaring Eagles committed just one attack error en route to a match-high .542 attack percentage.

Another tremendous effort on the serve also helped EC set an early tone. Leading 13-11 in the first set, Ryan McDonough '18 tossed up three aces as part of a 6-0 run, one that permanently put the set out of Sage's reach. Overall, six of the team's 12 aces came in the opening set. Fittingly enough, Dan Symer '19 ended the contest with one of his four aces for the match point in the third and final set.

The afternoon didn't end as favorably, however, as the Soaring Eagles dropped a rematch with the nationally-ranked Lasers by a 3-0 final score. Lasell, which had beaten Elmira in straight sets at the Rutgers-Newark Invitational on January 21st, was in the driver's seat for the majority of the match. In the opening set, EC pulled ahead 5-2 following kills from consecutive kills from Symer, McDonough, and Matthew Buffum '18, but the Lasers responded with 12 of the next 15 points to take control.

Inside the Box Score (Sage)
  • Both teams started strong offensively, as EC hit .542 (14k-1e-24a) in the first set, while Sage hit .368 (10k-3e-19a).
  • Overall, the Soaring Eagles attacked at a rate of .312 (36k-12e-77a).
  • The Gators finished with a .118 attack percentage (27k-19e-68a).
  • McDonough led all players with a match-best 13 kills and five aces.
  • Buffum and Symer finished with seven and six kills, respectively.
  • Matt Straney '20 had a match-high six total blocks.
  • Jeremy Best '19 recorded 28 assists and all three of his attacks went down as kills.
  • Ryan Guyton led the Gators with nine kills.
  • Shane Wenz recorded a match-leading six digs.

Inside the Box Score (Lasell)
  • Lasell outhit Elmira in terms of attack percentage, .457-to-.157.
  • The Lasers had better numbers in nearly every other category as well, including aces (11-to-2) and blocks (7-to-1).
  • Mark Kawecki ' 17 led the Soaring Eagles with seven kills in the loss.
  • Buffum was next with six kills, followed by Symer with five.
  • Ryan Branigan '19 had a team-high eight digs.
  • Best posted 19 assists for the Soaring Eagles.
  • Tristan Davis and Jeffrey Vautrin combined for 28 of Lasell's 44 kills.
  • Vautrin had 12 kills on 20 attempts without an error, resulting in a .600 attack percentage.

News and Notes
  • Elmira is now 4-11 on the season after going 3-1 in its home invitational.
  • EC's three-set sweep of Sage was its third straight sets victory in a row, after opening the Elmira College Invitational with 3-0 wins over Southern Vermont and D'Youville.
  • Inside Speidel Gymnasium this season, the Soaring Eagles are 3-2.
  • The Purple and Gold produced their three best attack percentages and three highest ace totals during the three victories over the Weekend.
  • The .312 team attack percentage is the highest of the season for the Soaring Eagles.
  • With 13 kills against Sage, McDonough posted his seventh match of the season with double-digit kills.
  • McDonough's five aces are a career high.
  • Straney's six block assists are a season high for the rookie.
  • Best had finished with double-digit assists in every match this season.

Up Next
The Soaring Eagles return to Speidel Gymnasium next weekend for a United Volleyball Conference Tri-Match against against Stevens Institute of Technology and Vassar College. EC will host the Ducks at 11:00 a.m. and will face the Brewers at 4:00 p.m. on Saturday, February 18th.

 
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