Box Score

POUGHKEEPSIE, NY (March 24, 2009) – Despite leading 2-1 heading into the fourth game, the Vassar College men's volleyball team dropped a 3-2 (30-27, 24-30, 30-27, 27-30, 11-15) decision to rival New York University Tuesday evening at Kenyon Hall. The visiting Violets were propelled by a strong offensive effort from senior hitter Devin Zolnowski (Bridgewater, NJ/Bridgewater-Raritan), who finished with a team-high 25 kills. The loss was just Vassar's second at home this season, and only their third in the past two years.

Vassar, ranked No. 8 in the country in the most recent AVCA Top 15 Coaches Poll, dips to 16-6 overall and will host Endicott College this Saturday at 2:00 p.m. The Endicott match will be the final home game for Vassar's six seniors. No. 10 NYU improves to 6-17 and will take on Harvard this Saturday at 3:00 p.m. in Manhattan.

The Brewers were coming off of a fourteen-day stretch without a single contest, but the hiatus didn't seem to have an effect in the first game. Vassar led throughout the entire period, largely thanks to some great net play by junior Phil Tully (Huntington Station, NY/Walt Whitman) and senior Steve Micucci (Millis, MA/Millis). Tully would finish the five-setter with a match-high 27 kills, and also provided the highlight of the evening on the final point of the first game. In what was one of the longest points of the match, the All-American hitter made a spectacular dig diving into the stands, and then somehow made it back across the court to deliver the game's final kill, a screamer down the left sideline, to give his squad the match's initial advantage.

But NYU took full advantage of the Brewers' low hitting percentage in the second set (.073 as a team) with a consistently strong attack spearheaded by Zolnowski and sophomore Fran Hodgson (Surf City, NJ/Southern Regional). Junior Michael Ferragonio (Irwin, PA/Norwin) complemented Hodgson's 16 kills with 15 of his own.

NYU won the second set 30-24, and Vassar came back to regain the lead in the third with a 30-27 edge. The Brewers hit their best in the third, with a .366 team mark, but their charge at the net cooled off in the final two games while NYU remained stable, and the visitors were able to clinch the final two games, 30-27 and 15-11.

For the Violets, senior setter Ilan Goldstein (Pacific Palisades, CA/Brentwood) contributed 58 assists and freshman Jay Hayes (Naperville, IL/St. Francis College Prep) had a match-high 16 digs.

Vassar was led by the setting duo of senior John Kessenich (Chicago, IL/Richard Montgomery) and freshman Clifford Quinn (Hamburg, NY/Frontier Central), who had 46 and 26 assists, respectively. The Brewers also had a 81-67 edge over NYU in total kills, led by Tully's 27, Micucci's 16, and 11 and 10 each from sophomore Evan Fredericksen (Menlo Park, CA/Menlo Atherton) and senior Brian Bacchi (Hicksville, NY/Hicksville).