NORTON, Mass. — Senior right side hitter Trey Guest (Newington, Conn.) dominated with 20 kills to lead the Emmanuel College (Mass.) men's volleyball team over host Wheaton College (Mass.), 3-0 (25-20, 25-22, 25-21), this evening at Emerson Gymnasium on the Wheaton campus in Norton, Mass.
The Saints improve to 4-5 on the season, while the Lyons dip to 0-3. For Wheaton, it was its first-ever home match during its inaugural campaign.
Emmanuel hit .282 for the match, including .385 in the second frame and .333 in the third. The Lyons hit .148 for the night and owned a .259 mark in the middle set.
Guest hit .351 during the match and added six digs and four block assists for the Saints, while senior middle blocker Rob Moore (East Islip, N.Y.) put down 11 kills on a .412 hitting clip to go with a pair of digs and a block assist. First year setter Tye Barrett (South Burlington, Vt.) set for 37 assists, picked up four digs and got up for a block.
Sophomore right side hitter Jack Kenyon (Westerly, R.I.) swung for nine kills, picked up six digs and got up for four block assists for Wheaton and sophomore outside hitter Connor Lloyd (Swansea, Mass.) put away six kills, added a dig and two block assists. First year setter Jacob Hoy (Essex Junction, Vt.) registered 23 assists, four digs, two block assists and fired an ace and first year Jeremy Bullard-Smith (Boston, Mass.) contributed with a match-high seven block assists in addition to a pair of kills.
All three sets were extremely well contested with both teams playing within two points or the majority of the evening.
Emmanuel opened a 5-1 lead, paced by a pair of kills from Guest, before the Lyons shook off their first home set jitters and scored four of the next five points to cut the deficit to 6-5. The teams played within two points until sophomore outside hitter Connor Lloyd (Swansea, Mass.) put down a kill to pull Wheaton even for the eighth tie of the set at 19-19. The Saints closed out the frame with a 6-1 run, fueled by three kills from Guest to give the visitors a one-set margin.
The second set was even more tightly battled. The Lyons took their first lead of the night at 6-5, before the teams were tied for the ninth time in the frame at 10-10 with neither team leading by more than a point. Wheaton grabbed a 12-10 margin and Kenyon swung for a kill to maintain the home team's advantage at 14-12. The teams were tied again at 20-20 for the 15th draw of the frame, before Emmanuel was able to put the set away with five of the final seven points, including a pair of kills from Brendan McGinley (South Burlington, Vt.).
The Lyons took an early 5-3 lead behind a pair of kills from first year right side hitter Ryan Rathbun (North Kingstown, R.I.) and an ace from Hoy. First year outside hitter Masiah Prak (Coventry, R.I.) put down a kill to keep Wheaton's margin at 7-5. The Saints scored five of the next six points to take a 10-8 lead, before the Lyons roared back with four of the next five points, including a kill from Bullard-Smith, to take a 12-11 edge. It was their last lead of the night. Emmanuel put together the only big run of the evening, reeling off seven unanswered points, led by three kills from Guest, to take an 18-12 cushion for the largest lead from either side for the match. Guest put down another kill to maintain the Saints' margin at 21-15, but Wheaton began to chip away with a 5-2 burst to pull within 23-20. Emmanuel tallied two of the final three points, including a kill from Moore to give the Saints the set and the match.
Emmanuel returns to the court on February 4 when it hosts Curry College at 7:00 p.m., while the Lyons host Emerson College on January 29 at 7:00 p.m. in Emerson Gymnasium.
** Release courtesy of Wheaton College Athletic Communications Office
