March 26, 2009
BEVERLY, Mass. - No. 3 Rivier College extended its winning streak to an astounding 26 matches as the Raiders held of 13th-ranked Endicott, 3-2, on Thursday night in Beverly, Mass. Rivier posted game scores of 30-26, 34-36, 30-18, 28-30, and 15-7 to improve to 29-1 overall, while the loss marks the fourth in a row for Endicott, dipping the Gulls to 19-11.
The Raiders opened the night by taking a 30-26 win in game one. Austin Soucy (Tolland, Conn.) led the offensive effort with six kills in the opening frame, while Zach Hansen (Shelton, Conn.) dished out 17 assists. The Raiders led by as many as eight points in the set, however Endicott showed great determination to battle its way back into contention.
In the second, Endicott carried the late momentum garnered in the first game to swipe a marathon 36-34 win. John Emery (Westford, Mass.) had six kills in the second game, while Ben Foster (Penfield, N.Y.) chipped in with 15 assists. The Gulls front line was able to slow the Rivier attack, as the Blue and Green notched six blocks with James Sliva (Monroe, Conn.) and Brent Feldman (West Palm Beach, Fla.) each recording three assisted blocks in the win.
The third game belonged to Rivier from start to finish, as the Raiders pounded their way to a 30-18 win. Austin Soucy continued his standout night with six kills on 12 attempts. Rivier used a 15-3 run during the set to secure the 30-18 win.
The fourth game was a see-saw battle, as Endicott was eventually able to fight its way to see a fifth and deciding game. The Gulls' John Emery had eight kills and a solo block in the fourth, with no kill being larger than the game-winner off a pass from Ben Foster to force game five.
Rivier was able to jump out to a 7-2 lead on the back of three-straight service aces by Scott Wright (Salem, N.H.) in the deciding game. Endicott was never able to get into a rhythm in the fifth, dropping the match with a 15-7 setback.
Rivier's Austin Soucy had 21 kills while teammate Jared Andreozzi (Barrington, R.I.) had 20 kills with just two errors. Zach Hansen continued adding to his NECVA leading assist average, as he had 72 assists and 15 digs for the Raiders. Scott Wright chipped in with three solo and four assisted blocks in the win.
Endicott got 21 kills from John Emery and 17 kills and two solo/six assisted blocks from A.J. Witkofsky (Scotia, N.Y.). Ben Foster closed out the night with 60 assists and Dan Coleman (Millis, Mass.) had 21 digs.
Endicott returns to action on Saturday as the Gulls travel to face Vassar College at 2:00 p.m. Rivier looks to extend its remarkable streak against Johnson & Wales at 12:00 p.m. on Saturday.
