UTICA, N.Y. – A Saturday trip to SUNY Poly resulted in a pair of defeats for the Emmanuel men's volleyball program, losing in straight sets to No. 12 St. John Fisher, followed by a five-set loss to the hosts, SUNY Poly. The Saints drop to 11-10 this season and return to play next Saturday, hosting a tri-match with Regis and Elms.
MATCH ONE: No. 12 St. John Fisher 3 – Emmanuel 0 (25-18, 25-19, 25-16)
In the first match of the afternoon, the Saints fell in straight sets to the No. 12 team in the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Top-25 Poll, the St. John Fisher Cardinals. The loss is the seventh of the season against a ranked opponent.
In the opening set, the Saints and Cardinals fought for momentum before St. John Fisher broke away with the use of an 8-1 surge, helping them to a 20-11 lead. Emmanuel battled back to within six but the lead was too large to overcome as the Cardinals took the first, 25-18.
Despite an early lead, the Cardinals had to hold off the Saints at various points to take the second set. Emmanuel couldn't overcome the early hole they found themselves in and despite pulling within three late in the set, the final three points favored the Cardinals in the 25-19 set win.
An 8-2 start for St. John set the stage for their straight sets sweep. Just as Emmanuel had done in the previous sets, the Saints made a late charge, using a 5-0 run to pull within three points at 18-15. But seven of the final eight points favored the Cardinals as they took the third set 25-16.
The Saints were led by junior
Trey Guest, who finished the match with a team-high nine kills. Senior
Louis Da Silva added eight kills and five total blocks while fellow senior
Jyles Amirault chipped in with six kills.
MATCH TWO: SUNY Poly 3 – Emmanuel 2 (17-25, 28-26, 25-23, 25-27, 16-14)
In the opening set, Emmanuel ran out in front by scoring nine of the first 11 points, helping to hold a significant first-set advantage. The Wildcats could only get as close as six points, as the Saints combined for 14 kills on 27 attempts with four errors, hitting .370 in their 25-17 opening frame win.
The second set required extra points to determine a winner, eventually leading to the Wildcats tying the match at one set apiece. Key opportunities for the Saints to claim the second set fell as they went 0-for-4 on set points, allowing SUNY Poly to take advantage. The Wildcats used their only set point chance to win the second, 28-26.
In the third, neither side led by more than two throughout the duration of the set, leading to a 22-22 tie. Back-to-back hitting errors by the Saints made the difference in the third, giving SUNY Poly a set point at 24-22. The Saints defended one set point but the Wildcats put away the set on their second try, claiming the set 25-23.
Like the second set, the fourth required extra points between the two evenly-matched teams. A late-set comeback by the Saints forced a deciding set on Saturday evening. The Wildcats led by five at 22-17 before five straight points, including two aces for Da Silva and two kills for Guest, helped tie the set. The Saints needed three set points on this occasion before Amirault converted a kill for the 27-25 set win.
In the fifth, the third set of the afternoon that required extra points, fell in favor of SUNY Poly, helping them hang on to a 3-2 win. The Wildcats led by three in the early going but by the end of the set, the Saints had erased the deficit down to a 14-14 tie. A Saints error and kill by Adam Brawn would follow, giving SUNY the 16-14 win.
Guest finished with a career-high 23 kills, hitting .306 from the floor. Amirault added 16 kills and 15 digs while Da Silva added a dozen kills and six service aces.
