BOSTON, Mass. (3/25/17) –  The Emmanuel College men's volleyball team was defeated by Emerson College 3-0 (25-16, 25-20, 25- 21) in a crosstown GNAC meeting on Saturday afternoon. The victory pushes the Lions over the hump to 9-8 while the Saints drop to 6-15.

The opening set started tight as Emmanuel took an early 4-3 lead on a kill from Paul Bleau (Auburn, Mass.), the first multi-kill match of his career. No more than three points separated Emmanuel and Emerson until the Lions went on a 10-2 run mid match putting them ahead 17-9.  The Lions would not look back closing out the set 25-16.

The squads traded points until a 10-10 score in the second frame.  Emmanuel created a three-point gap making the score 13-10, but Emmerson countered with a 5-0 run of their own that included two of Win Kittivatcharapong's (Bangkok, Thailand) 17 kills.  The Saints proceeded to keep the match tight, but the Lions closed out the set 25-20.

The third stanza saw more of the same action with the familiar foes trading points early on.  Emmanuel opened a 10-6 lead, their largest of the night, on a kill from Alex Silva (Jamaica Plain, Mass.). Quickly closing the gap, Emerson went on a 3-0 run of their own.  The streaky Lions heated up going on a 5-0 run to overtake the Saints lead.  Emmanuel battled back with a late kill by Manuel Velez (San Jose, Costa Rica) getting them within one point at 22-21. Emerson finished the match off with three straight points from Mark Piorkowski (Montclair, N.J.) including two services aces, to down the Saints 25-21.

Max Gottuso (Long Beach, N.Y.) led the Saints on both sides of the court recording 10 digs adding seven kills, while Silva also tallied seven kills. Seamus McDonough (Long Beach, N.Y.)  assisted on 20 points and Elijah Parks (Long Beach, N.Y) had 9 digs on the day.

Kittivatcharapong recorded a game high 17 kills while Nick Rusk tallied a game high 30 helpers and 13 digs.

The Saints play host to GNAC opponent Lasell College Tuesday at 7pm on Andy Yosinoff Court.  The Lions are back in action on Tuesday at 7pm for a conference contest against Johnson and Wales.