BEVERLY, Mass. – The first-seeded Endicott men's volleyball team fell to second-seeded Nichols, 3-1, by scores of 15-25, 25-23, 22-25, and 16-25 in the New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) Championship on Saturday evening at MacDonald Gymnasium.
With the win, the Bison captured their first NECC Championship since the program was established in 2019. Nichols also snapped the Gulls' three-year reign atop the conference (2019, 2021-22).
Rafa Robert (San Juan, Puerto Rico) paced the Gulls with 13 kills (.300), seven digs, and three block assists.
Nikolas Kasprzak (Windham, N.H.) chipped in with 12 kills (.750), while Mason Mallory (Playa del Rey, Calif.) notched 10 kills, three service aces, three digs, and one block assist.
Gabe DeBenedetto (Rockford, Ill.) facilitated the offense via 38 assists.
Today's match featured 15 ties (0-7-4-4) and five lead changes (0-2-0-3).
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- Nichols earned its first win in the all-time series against Endicott (10-1).
- Despite the loss, the Gulls still rank first among all programs in the conference with eight NECC Championships attached to their resume.
- The Bison won a program record 22 matches this season.
NECC ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
MVP – Carlos Mercado, Nichols
Dylan Urbanski, Nichols
Tanner Soracco, Nichols
Nikolas Kasprzak, Endicott
Gabe DeBenedetto, Endicott
Alejandro Garcia Fernandez, Eastern Nazarene
Joe Zimmerman, SUNY Potsdam
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