NECC TOURNAMENT: No. 1 Endicott Blanks No. 5 Newbury In Semifinals, 3-0

Daniel Toth swings at a volleyball.

BEVERLY, Mass. – The first-seeded Endicott men's volleyball team moved one step closer to capturing its fifth straight conference title on Thursday night with a 3-0 victory over fifth-seeded Newbury in the semifinal round of the New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) Tournament by scores of 25-11, 25-20, and 25-18. 

The match never seemed in doubt for the Gulls despite playing through five tied scores and two lead changes in set two, and five more tied scores and three lead changes in set three. Newbury's biggest lead in either set was only two points, and the Nighthawks never held an advantage in set two or three past the 6-6 mark. Endicott also led the whole way in set one. 

Daniel Toth (Glenwood, N.J.) highlighted play on both sides of the net with a match-high 10 kills to go along with a .643 hitting percentage, one dig and five blocks (four assisted). Bryn Lipton (Rockford, Ill.) chipped in with nine kills and five digs, while Donovan Dey (Fairport, N.Y.) had eight kills (.333 hitting percentage), one assist, two service aces, and four block assists. 

Chad Riorden (Fairport, N.Y.) ran the offense on a match-high 24 assists, and Ryan Healy (Fair Lawn, N.J.) paced the defense with a match-high seven digs. 

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE

  • Endicott is 3-0 against Newbury this season, and 27-8 all-time versus the Nighthawks.
  • Five of seven digs by Healy led directly to kills.
  • Toth had three kills in the first set, four in the second, and an additional three in the third. 

FOR THE FOES

  • Joshua Thorne (Oxford, Conn.) tallied a team-high six kills.
  • Matt Sepe (Cranston, R.I.) had four kills, while Tyler Polite (Hyde Park, Mass.) registered three.
  • Oscar Chavez (Independence, Ore.) produced 12 assists. 

WHAT'S NEXT

First-seeded Endicott (20-10) will host third-seeded Elms (18-9) in the NECC Tournament championship match on Saturday at 2 PM. Newbury's season comes to a close at 10-16 overall. 

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