BEVERLY, Mass. – With the regular season completed, the New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) released the official seeding information, match dates, and start times for NECC Tournament which will determine which school earns a bid into the NCAA Division III Tournament. Endicott (16-12, 11-1) finished atop the conference standings during the regular season and will be the top seed with home-court advantage.
In the semifinal round, which takes place on Friday, April 11th at Endicott's MacDonald Gymnasium, the Gulls will take on the #4 seed Regis (Mass.) at 4:00 pm followed by #2 Daniel Webster vs #3 Southern Vermont in the other semifinal match at 6:00 pm. The championship match will be held at Endicott on Saturday, April 12th at 4:00 pm with the semifinal round winners pitted against each other. Endicott will be looking to repeat as NECC champions after capturing the 2013 title and advancing into the NCAA's.
Endicott will be facing Regis (Mass.) for the third time this season. At home back on February 11th, the Gulls swept the Pride 3-0 (25-12, 25-16, 25-15) behind a .402 team hitting percentage that saw senior middle Mike Coniglione (Glenville, N.Y.) record eight kills with no errors at a .727 clip. Defensively, the Gulls were able to hold Regis to a .069 team hitting percentage behind nine digs from senior libero Aaron Jessee (Okinawa, Japan). On the road on March 20th, the Pride grinded out a 26-24 set one victory but Endicott rebounded with 25-14, 25-14, 25-14 set wins to take the match in four sets. Sophomore outside John Osborne (Freehold, N.J.) struck a match-high 15 kills, senior Brenna Lowe (Malibu, Calif.) did not record an error in 17 swings with 12 kills, and senior middle Travis Netherton (Waukegan, Ill.) blocked seven total attempts by Pride attackers.
The Gulls will up against freshman outside and NECC Rookie of the Year candidate Sean Bisnett (Oxnard, Calif.) who ranks third in the conference in total kills (261) and fourth in kills per set (3.35). Bisnett put up six kills in his first match against Endicott but flourished in his second match, striking 12 kills while adding four digs and three service aces.
Regis comes into this year's NECC Tournament with a 12-10 (6-6 NECC) record, their best in program history.
2014 NECC MEN'S VOLLEYBALL TOURNAMENT
All times subject to change.
Semifinals • Friday, April 11
#4 Regis (12-10, 6-6) at #1 Endicott (16-12, 11-1), 4:00 PM Live Stats | Video
#3 Southern Vermont (13-12, 8-4) vs #2 Daniel Webster (12-13, 9-3), 6:00 PM Live Stats | Video
Championship Game • Saturday, April 12
Semifinal Round Winners, 4:00 PM Live Stats | Video
