Men's Volleyball Defeats Rutgers-Newark in Four Sets to Advance to NCAA Tournament Semifinal

NEWARK, N.J. –The #7 ranked Wentworth Institute of Technology men's volleyball team defeated #5 ranked Rutgers-Newark University Saturday, April 16, as the Leopards advanced to the third round of the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2017.

RECORDS

• Wentworth (30-4, 16-1 GNAC)
• Rutgers-Newark (24-8)

WENTWORTH STAT LEADERS:

• Kills – Hunter Oshman, 14
• Assists – Connor Adams, 27
• Digs – Connor Adams, 9
• Aces – Hunter Oshman, Connor Adams, Colin Stockton, 2

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• Rutgers-Newark started out strong, winning the first three points of the match thanks to a pair of kills by Daniel Quay (Yardley, Pa.), who finished with eight on the night. The Leopards then won the next three to draw even, as junior Hunter Oshman (Pennington, N.J.) picked up a kill and classmate Colin Stockton (Hummelstown, Pa.) picked up a service ace. Quay and Arvind Kumar (Manahawkin, N.J.) picked up two more kills for the Scarlet Raiders, but Oshman and junior Alex McLane (Columbus, Ohio) matched them to even the score at 5-5. Kumar, who had five kills in the opening set, picked up two more to put Rutgers-Newark back ahead, and a finisher by Andrew Zaleck (Old Bridge, N.J.) made it a 10-7 lead for the home team. But Wentworth came storming back, going on a 7-2 run to jump ahead. Oshman had two kills and an ace during the run, which put the visitors ahead 13-12. After two kills for Kumar tied the set at 15, two errors but the Scarlet Raiders made it a two-point lead for the Leopards and forced a Rutgers-Newark timeout. Two kills from Zaleck tied it at 18 apiece coming out of the break, but with the score tied at 19-19, Wentworth took control the rest of the way. The Leopards closed out the opener on a 6-1 run, as sophomore Jacob LaBouliere (Pipersville, Pa.) scored two kills and Stockton added another ace. The Leopards took the first set 25-20 to go ahead 1-0 in the match.
• Rutgers-Newark again took the first three points to start off, with Quay again putting down two kills. Wentworth cut the lead to two points at 5-3, but the Scarlet Raiders won the next two to extend their lead to four points. A 5-1 run that featured another kill by Zaleck brought it to a 12-6 score as the Leopards called timeout. Zaleck added another kill as Rutgers-Newark went ahead 14-7, but Wentworth took the next three to narrow the deficit to four. The teams then traded points, as LaBouliere and McLane had kills for the Leopards while Zaleck added one for the Knights. With the score sitting at 20-16 in favor of the home team, McLane and graduate student David Marsh (Springfield, Mass.), who had a huge night on the defensive side with seven total blocks, had one kill each for the Leopards. But Rutgers-Newark came back with a kill and ace by Kumar, and were able to pull away for a 25-19 win in the second to even the match.
• Wentworth turned it around in the third, as the Leopards jumped on the Knights by winning seven of the first nine. LaBouliere had two kills and an ace, while senior Connor Adams (Budd Lake, N.J.) had two aces as well. Zaleck came back with a kill for Rutgers-Newark, but the Knights then had three straight errors and took a timeout as Wentworth went ahead 11-4. Three straight points for the home team pulled them to within four as Eric Hollenbach (Piscataway, N.J.) put down three consecutive kills. But Wentworth responded with an 8-2 run to build a 10-point lead at 19-9. LaBouliere had a trio of kills, while McLane added one during the stretch. Rutgers-Newark fought back to win five of six, but McLane and Oshman picked up kills for the Leopards to put the visitors ahead 23-16. The Knights eventually narrowed their deficit to four points, but LaBouliere finished off the third set with a kill to give Wentworth a 25-20 victory put them ahead two sets to one.
• The teams battled to a 3-3 score in the third, but Rutgers-Newark won the next two to go ahead. The Leopards once again went on a dominant stretch, as an 8-1 run that featured two kills and an ace from Oshman, as well as one ace by sophomore Tyler Jack (San Jose, Calif.) put Wentworth ahead 11-6. After two Scarlet Knight points, two kills from LaBouliere and one by Oshman helped the Leopards win six of eight to take a 17-10 lead. Two more kills from Oshman were answered by one from Kumar, but a kill and block by LaBouliere gave the Leopards a 23-15 lead. One more kill by LaBouliere gave Wentworth a match point opportunity, then Oshman finished it off with a kill to send the Leopards to the NCAA Semifinal as Wentworth won set four 25-17.
• Head coach Evin Giglio spoke on his team's performance after the match, saying "I'm really proud of the way our guys played, a lot of really good defensive plays, rallys, and getting big swings when we needed them in big moments." After the Leopards dropped the second set, he said the team remained posed and calm. "It was pretty calm in the huddle to be honest." He said. "There wasn't a lot of panic. I think our confidence level, these guys have been so confident and we know we might have a few bad rallies here and there and we might make some mistakes, but we've gotta stick to what we do well and make sure we focus."
• Marsh, who had seven blocks and three digs on the defensive side, talked about the passion that he and his teammates have and how he believes that has impacted the team's performance in the tournament. "It's nice knowing my teammates are confident in me. Just the amount of energy in the gym sometimes is enough to want to come in and play. We all just genuinely love the game."
• Oshman, who had six kills and two blocks in the final set, spoke about the fourth and how the team felt they needed to close the match out at that point. "I definitely didn't want to go to five." He said. "The way we came out, I knew I could help us out a lot with my energy. I definitely wanted to make sure I stayed up to help out the rest of the guys."
• Giglio also spoke on how the defense has been key for the Leopards so far in the NCAA Tournament. "The things you do during the regular season, you gotta amplify a little bit. You gotta work a little bit harder. And both against Fisher and tonight, it's just a little bit tougher, but that's what the NCAA Tournament is."
• Wentworth won its 30^th game of the season Friday, building upon the program record they set with Friday's victory over St. John Fisher College.
• Wentworth won its 15^th consecutive match Saturday, and had their consecutive sets won streak snapped at 32.
• The Leopards advance to the third round of the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2017.

THE SERIES:

• This was the 2^nd time the two programs have met, with this being the first postseason matchup. The series is now tied 1-1.

NEXT UP:

• The Leopards now travel to Kenosha, Wis. for the NCAA Tournament Semifinal Friday, April 22 against host and #2 ranked Carthage College. Match time is scheduled for 8:30 p.m. EST.

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