2004 Preview

Dec. 12, 2003

The Gulls are looking to build on their 2003 season successes and take the program to new levels in 2004. Some of their highlights from last season include new records for both win totals overall (17-10) and in the NECVA (13-3), hosting their inaugural Invitational and the victories over \#13 Rivier and \#17 SUNY New Paltz at it and picking up their first NECVA playoff win in exciting fashion. After falling behind 0-2, they rallied for a 3-2 victory over Philadelphia Biblical University at the NECVA Championships.

This is the program's fifth varsity season and the Gulls have decided to step up the level of play and see where they stand in the big picture. They will be competing with some of the top D3 programs from around the nation as well as D1, D2 and NAIA schools. This years schedule includes Springfield College, New York U., Steven's Tech, Roger Williams, Sacred Heart, New Haven and a trip to California to compete with Santa Cruz, LaVerne and Hope International.

On March 5-6, EC will host the second annual Endicott College Vizion Apparel Invitational. Based on the success of last year's tourney, this year the field has been expanded to 12 teams and the participants include defending Champions - D'Youville (NY), Dallas Baptist (TX), Endicott (MA), Hunter (NY), Johnson & Wales (RI), Medaille (NY), MIT (MA), New Jersey City University (NJ), Palm Beach Atlantic University (FL), Ramapo (NJ), Rivier (NH) and SUNY New Paltz (NY).

The team will be returning 5 of 6 starters, which includes NECVA New England Player of the Year, Jeremy Fontaine (Jr., Belchertown, MA) and New England Setter of the Year, Pablo Baez (Sr. San Juan, PR). Other players likely to make an impact include Brandon Ecker (Sr. Metairie, LA), Craig Steszewski (Sr. Rochester, NY), Russ Friedland (Jr. Mansfield, CT) Eric Hunter (So. Delmar, NY) and Eddie Marchand (Fr. Wakefield, RI).

With Coach Byram's first class of seniors coming through the program and the addition of another talented rookie class, the Gulls are looking to combine a talented team with a challenging schedule to continue their climb into the top tier of Division 3 programs in the nation. The 2004 men's volleyball team is planning to make this year a banner season.