No. 10 Wentworth Slips By Endicott, 3-2

BOSTON, Mass. — The Endicott men's volleyball team fell to No. 10 nationally ranked Wentworth, 3-2, by scores of 25-17, 20-25, 27-25, 18-25, and 10-15 on Thursday night at Tansey Gymnasium. 

Bryn Lipton (Rockford, Ill.) turned in a match-high 18 kills and six digs, while Donovan Dey (Fairport, N.Y.) contributed 13 kills, two digs, and five blocks (one solo, four assisted). Meanwhile, Seth Braquet (Destrehan, La.) chipped in with 10 putaways on 18 swings (.389) to go along with one service ace, three digs, and five block assists.

Adam Dake (Victor, N.Y.) also ran the offense with 30 assists, while Ryan Healy (Fair Lawn, N.J.) paced the defense with a match-high 14 digs. Troy Riorden (Fairport, N.Y.) rounded out the list of highlights for the Gulls with seven kills, two service aces, and 13 digs.

Endicott led 2-1 in the match after rallying from an 18-14 hole in set three (27-25 win), but Wentworth responded with a .262 hitting percentage over the final two sets to secure the win.

SET-BY-SET

• In the first set, Endicott used a 9-2 run to jump out to a 16-9 advantage and never looked back. Braquet paced the Gulls with two kills during the spurt, while Riorden and Lipton added one kill each, respectively. Riorden also held serve for six straight points during Endicott's 9-2 run (11-9 to 16-9) and registered two service aces.
• Set two was a different story for the Gulls as Wentworth held Endicott to a .056 hitting percentage (9K, 7E, 36 TA) by posting 18 digs (set-high) and five blocks. Additionally, the Leopards methodically erased a 9-9 tie with an 11-6 run before taking the set 25-20. 
• In set three, Endicott rallied back from an 18-14 deficit via a 13-7 run to come away with its 27-25 victory. The third stanza also featured six ties and three lead changes from the 18-14 mark on prior to the Gulls coming away with the set despite trailing 24-23 and 25-24 late. Offensively, Lipton paced the Gulls with four kills, while Riorden chipped in with two kills and a service ace during the 13-7 run. As a team, Endicott rebounded with a set-high 18 kills (.344 hitting percentage) and a team-high 16 digs.
• Wentworth answered Endicott in set four with a .350 hitting percentage (team-high) and also capitalized on a set-high 10 hitting errors from the Gulls. Wentworth also registered a set-high 6.5 blocks during the fourth stanza.
• The Leopards produced eight kills, a .182 hitting percentage and limited Endicott to a .-053 hitting percentage to improve to 2-2 in five-set matches.

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE

• Despite the loss, Endicott leads the all-time series 22-9, and are 9-5 on the road versus the Leopards.
• Endicott is 1-1 in five-set matches.
• The Gulls' longest winning streak to start a season came to an end with tonight's loss (7-1).

FOR THE FOES

• Ollie Oshman (Pennington, N.J.) had a team-high 13 kills on 22 swings (.545) in addition to eight blocks (one solo, seven assisted).
• Collin Ritter (Feeding Hills, Mass.) filled the stat sheet with 12 kills (.308), a team-high 26 assists, 11 digs, and eight block assists.
• Jon Roat (Rochester, N.Y.) notched 10 kills, while Augusto Rodriguez-Guerrios (Guaynabo, Puerto Rico) dished out 22 assists and had six digs.
• Wentworth entered tonight's match ranked No. 2 in the country in blocks per set. The Leopards compiled 17 total (two solo, 30 assisted, two blocking errors).

WHAT'S NEXT

Endicott (7-1) hosts Lasell College on Thursday, February 8 at 6 PM. Wentworth (5-2) welcomes Rivier to its campus next Thursday at 7 PM. 

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(Photo Credit - David Le '10)