Men’s Volleyball Sweeps Nichols, Topples AIC to Open Regular Season

BOSTON, Mass. – The Wentworth Institute of Technology men's volleyball team opened the season with a pair of wins over Nichols and AIC in Saturday's tri-match. The Leopards swept the Bison in the opening game before taking down the Yellow Jackets in four sets. Alem Dubcak led the way against Nichols with 13 kills while Cody Popp tallied 14 finishes to bury the Yellow Jackets.

MATCH ONE: 11 WENTWORTH 3, NICHOLS 0

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Wentworth opened an 8-2 lead early in set one thanks to three kills from Dubcak. Nichols battled back to make it 11-7 before kills from William Biggs and Dubcak pushed the Leopards' lead to seven. Adam Vincent recorded a couple finishes, but attacking errors kept Wentworth in front 19-11. The Bison then went on an 8-2 run behind kills from Connor Snow and an ace from Bryce Bonville, making it a 21-19 game. Conner Foxwell and Dubcak combined for four straight finishes to hold off Nichols and take set one 25-19.
• Errors from the Bison and a Biggs kill gave Wentworth an early advantage at 6-1 to start the second frame. Brady Pomainville and Bonville brought the visitors within three before attacking errors put the Leopards back in front by six. Matthew Zegowitz and Dubcak kept the lead at four as Nichols continued to battle and chip into the lead. After the Bison made it 20-17, a service error and three straight attack errors gave Wentworth set point. The Leopards took set two 25-18 on another attack error from the Bison.
• The third set began with the team exchanging points before Dubcak's finish made it 10-6 for the hosts. Pomainville and Evan Sachs saw their kills answered by Dubcak as the teams exchanged 3-0 runs. The game went back and forth until Sachs and Vincent gave Nichols a 17-15 lead. Two aces from Zegowitz and two strong finishes from Benjamin Moughon put the Leopards back in front 19-17 late in the set. After Nichols tied things up, Wentworth closed the set on a 6-2 run, taking the final frame 25-21 and the match 3-0.
• Dubcak's 13 kills, hitting .346, led the team. Zegowitz finished with five kills while Biggs had four kills and three blocks. Brayden Green tallied 15 assists and eight digs while Moughon recorded eight digs with three kills.

THE SERIES

• Today was the 8th all-time meeting between the teams.

MATCH TWO: #11 WENTWORTH 3, AIC 1

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Tony Kowalewski and Nicolai Bell had a few strong finishes in the early going to give Wentworth a 6-3 edge over the Yellow Jackets. Emil Zhmaidziak's kill made it 11-9 before a kill and ace from Popp gave the Leopards a four-point lead. Wentworth stayed in control in the first frame, extending the lead to 22-14 thanks to back-to-back aces from Krister Leya. A service error from the Yellow Jackets gave Wentworth the 25-18 win in set one.
• After falling behind 5-2 early in the second frame, AIC made it 6-5 with an ace from Aidan Miller. Wentworth jumped back in front by two but kills from Zhmaidziak level the game at 11. The teams went back-and-forth, exchanging points before another kill from Kowalewski made it 20-18 in favor of the Black & Gold. The Yellow Jackets stayed in the set, but Saurab Anjanapa's strong kill sealed the win and put Wentworth up 2-0 in the match.
• The Yellow Jackets came out strong in the third set with Zhmaidziak's finish giving them a 7-4 lead. Wentworth battled back, tying the game thanks to an attack error. After the Leopards built a 13-10 lead, AIC stormed back behind points from Zhmaidziak to take a 16-15 lead. Jamilson Almeida and Connor White pushed the Yellow Jackets' lead to 21-17 before Popp ended the run. AIC held on to win the third set 25-21.
• Much like the third set, the fourth began with the two sides exchanging points with the game tied at 4. Biggs and Popp tallied points to go with two attack errors from the visitors, giving Wentworth a 9-4 edge. The Leopards maintained their lead at 19-14 until Zhmaidziak and Robert Santana got the Yellow Jackets within two. Three late points made it a close finish, but the Leopards held on to take the fourth set 25-21 and win the match 3-1.
• Popp's 14 kills on 29 swings led the way for Wentworth. Anjanapa and Kowalewski added five finishes each while Juan Zuniga tallied a team-high 11 digs. Nicolai Bell had four blocks to go with five digs and three kills.

THE SERIES

• Today was the 1st all-time meeting between the teams.

NEXT UP

• The Leopards will travel to Dallas, Pennsylvania for a tri-match hosted by Misericordia. Wentworth will play Messiah on Friday and Misericordia on Saturday.  

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