BEVERLY, Mass. – The Endicott men's volleyball team posted a perfect 12-0 league record to earn the top seed in the upcoming New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) Tournament this week. The four-time defending champion Gulls have also received a bye into the semifinals of the NECC tournament for securing the top seed.
During their current four-year title run, the Gulls have compiled a 44-2 conference record and a 56-0 mark over the last five seasons. Endicott also has gone undefeated in three of those years with 12-0 records (2013, 2015, 2017).
The Gulls are led by senior Daniel Toth (Glenwood, N.J.) and rookie standout Bryn Lipton (Rockford, Ill.). Toth is second in the conference with a .489 hitting percentage in league contests, and first in the NECC with 1.07 blocks per set. Lipton finished the regular season just behind in third with a hitting percentage of .470 against league opponents.
Regis College earned the other bye into the semifinals and the second seed with an impressive 10-2 NECC regular season. The Pride are guided by junior Brett Krahl and senior Sean Bisnett. The reigning NECC Player and Defensive Player of the Year respectively hope to avenge their semifinal loss from a season ago. Krahl led conference play with a hitting percentage .506, while Bisnett finished second with 3.59 kills per set in NECC play.
Hosting a first round matchup is third-seeded Elms College who will face sixth-seeded Southern Vermont College. The Blazers finished the season with a conference record of 8-4 while the Mountaineers completed the season with a 3-9 record. The matchup will take place on Tuesday, April 11th at 7:00 PM, as Elms will look to the strong offensive work of junior Gabriel Reis Levy to lead them to the semifinals.
The final first round matchup will pit fifth-seeded Newbury College (4-8) against fourth-seeded Eastern Nazarene College (5-7). The Lions had an incredible first season led largely by junior Kenny Sorensen, who finished second in kills (129) and third in points (156) in conference play this season.
The winners of the first round games will advance to the semifinals Thursday, April 13th. The semifinal winners will then face off in the NECC Championship on Saturday, April 15th at the highest remaining seed.
First Round – Tuesday, April 11th
Match 1: #5 Newbury College @ #4 Eastern Nazarene College 7:00 PM
Match 2: #6 Southern Vermont College @ #3 Elms College 7:00 PM
Semifinals – Thursday, April 13th
Match 3: Match 1 winner @ #1 Endicott College – 7:00 PM
Match 4: Match 2 winner @ #2 Regis College – 6:00 PM
Championship – Saturday, April 15th
Match 5: Match 3 winner vs. Match 4 winner – TBA For the latest on Endicott Athletics, follow the Gulls on social media on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.
(major portions of this release courtesy of the NECC Communications Office)
