Men's Volleyball Rebounds With Straight Set Victory Over Nichols

BOSTON, Mass. –The Wentworth Institute of Technology men's volleyball team got back in the win column Thursday evening, as the Leopards defeated Nichols College 3-0 at home.

RECORDS

• Wentworth (10-1, 3-0 GNAC)
• Nichols (5-5)

WENTWORTH STAT LEADERS:

• Kills –Jacob LaBouliere, 12; Hunter Oshman, 10
• Assists – Connor Adams, 37
• Digs – Phoenix Stebbins, 13
• Aces – Jacob LaBouliere 4, Tyler Jack 2

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• After falling behind early, the Leopards drew even at 3-3 following kills from junior Hunter Oshman (Pennington, N.J.) and sophomore Tyler Jack (San Jose, Calif.). Junior Colin Stockton (Hummelstown, Pa.) added a kill to give Wentworth the lead, and Oshman followed up with a service ace as part of three straight for the Leopards. With Wentworth leading 9-8, Oshman picked up a kill, and sophomore Jacob LaBouliere (Pipersville, Pa.) hit three straight aces and had a kill of his own, as five straight points gave the home team a six point advantage. With the score at 15-10, kills from Oshman and Stockton helped the Leopards win five of the following seven points, as the lead was stretched to 20-12. Kills from Oshman, Jack, and graduate student David Marsh (Springfield, Mass.), as well as an ace from Stockton, finished off the first set as Wentworth took a 25-18 victory in set one.
• Wentworth kept it going to start the second set, as LaBouliere, Jack, and Marsh had one kill apiece, jumpstarting the Leopards to an early 6-2 lead. With the lead narrowed to three points, a pair of kills from Jack were key in another 6-2 run, as Wentworth took command with a 14-7 advantage. Nichols' Tanner Soracco (Oxford, Conn.) came back with two kills for the Bison, cutting their deficit to five. LaBouliere and Oshman again picked up kills, giving the Leopards an eight point lead late in the set, and a kill by Stockton and ace from Jack gave the home team a 25-15 win as they went up 2-0 in the match.
• The teams played more evenly in the third, as an early pair of kill by Marsh were answered by Soracco, who led all players with 14 kills on the night. Wentworth held a slim one point advantage, but Oshman and LaBouliere again came through with kills as part of three straight, putting the Leopards up 10-6. After the teams traded points, two kills each from Marsh and LaBouliere had Wentworth still holding a four point lead, but Nichols came back to win five of the following six points, evening the score at 16-16. Wentworth jumped right back ahead, as two more kills from LaBouliere and one from Jack helped the Leopards take four of five. After the teams split the next four points, the Bison pulled within one, as they picked up a pair of kill and Wentworth committed an error. With the score 23-22, Oshman and Stockton were able to finish things off. The pair scored kills on the next two points, and the Leopards took the set by a 25-22 score, finishing the match with straight set victory.

THE SERIES:

• The two teams met for just the second time Thursday evening, with Wentworth now holding a 2-0 record.

NEXT UP:

• The Leopards resume conference play Saturday, Feb. 19, when they compete in a tri-match at Lasell University. Their first match is against Lasell at 11:00 a.m., with the second match taking place at 1:00 p.m. versus Elms College.