POUGHKEEPSIE, NY (March 5, 2015) – The Vassar College men's volleyball team (11-8, 0-2 UVC) returns home after an eight-game road trip for two huge UVC contests this Saturday. The Brewers face off against No. 8 Nazareth at 11 a.m., before taking on No. 5 SUNY New Paltz at 4 p.m. in Kenyon Hall.
 
Game Details
Opponent: No. 8 Nazareth (18-3 1-1 UVC)
Links:  (Nazareth Men's Volleyball Homepage) (Roster) (Stats) (Schedule)
Site: Poughkeepsie, NY
Facility: Kenyon Hall
Date: March 7, 2015
Time: 11:00 am
Twitter Coverage: (@VassarAthletics) (@VassarMensVB) (@NazAthletics)
Live Coverage: (Live Video) (Live Stats)
 
Opponent: No. 5 SUNY New Paltz (9-3, 2-1 UVC)
Links:  (SUNY New Paltz Men's Volleyball Homepage) (Roster) (Stats) (Schedule)
Site: Poughkeepsie, NY
Facility: Kenyon Hall
Date: March 7, 2015
Time: 4:00 pm
Twitter Coverage: (@VassarAthletics) (@VassarMensVB) (@NPHawks)
Live Coverage: (Live Video) (Live Stats)
 
What to Look For
Vassar is coming off a thrilling five-set victory over Hunter on Wednesday. The Brewers were down 11-7 in the fifth set, before going on a 8-1 run to seal the victory. If Vassar wants to come out on top this weekend, they'll have to play even better, as Nazareth is outhitting its opponents .340 to .139, while New Paltz is hitting .318 to their opponents' .162. The first match against Nazareth will be a rematch of the two team's Jan. 24 match, where the Golden Flyers outlasted the Brewers in five sets.
 
A Look at the Golden Flyers (18-3, 1-1 UVC)
Nazareth has had a very strong season thus far this year. The Golden Flyers started fast, with 11 straight wins to open the season, including a sweep of UC Santa Cruz, before falling to Medaille in four sets. This past week, after falling to Elmira in a five-set thriller, Nazareth bounced back to win the Elmira Tournament, defeating Wells, SUNY IT, and Stevenson, before defeating Keuka in four sets this Wednesday. The next six matches are all conference games for Nazareth.
 
The Golden Flyers run a very outside-heavy offense. Fellow junior outside hitters Tim Zyburt and Grant Levermore lead the offense with 206 and 173 kills. The duo is followed by the middle combination of senior Luke Lawatsch and Chris Mahan, each recording 128 and 95 kills, respectively. Lawatsch is also hitting a team-high .439. Freshman setter Jake Kemp runs the offense, totaling 555 assists. On defense, Lawatsch patrols the net, contributing 72 total blocks, while Levermore, Zyburt, and Kemp pace the defense with 86, 83, and 83 digs, respectively.
 
Projected Starting Lineup: OH – Tim Zyburt, OH – Grant Levermore, MH – Luke Lawatsch, MH – Chris Mahan, OPP – Josh Hieb, S – Jake Kemp, L – Cory Randolph
 
Against Nazareth All-Time
Nazareth currently leads the series 13-3. The Brewer's last win in the series came on Feb. 20, 2010, where they swept the Golden Flyers. However, since then, Nazareth has won 10 straight, including a five-set victory in the team's last meeting on Jan. 24, 2015.
 
A Look at the Hawks (9-3, 2-1 UVC)
SUNY New Paltz is also having a solid season so far, with just two losses to Division III opponents. After winning six of their first seven, including sweeps of NYU and MIT, the Hawks dropped two straight, falling in three sets to then-No. 1 Stevens, and in five sets against three-time defending national champions Springfield. Since then, New Paltz has responded in impressive fashion, defeating Cairn and Brooklyn this past Saturday, before a huge win over No. 1 Kean this Wednesday.
 
The Hawks are led on offense by freshman outside hitter Anthony Bonilla, who has 124 kills on a .345 hitting percentage. Behind him, junior middle hitter Christopher Husmann has 105 kills, and is leading the nation with a .529 hitting percentage. Fellow setters Christian Smith and John Lutjen split the setting duties, with 213 and 194 assists, respectively. The duo has also combined for 130 total kills. On defense, junior libero leads the team with 89 total digs, while Husmann and fellow middle hitter Steven Woessner pace the team with 29 and 27 total blocks, respectively.
 
Projected Starting Lineup: OH – Anthony Bonilla, OH – Andy Fishman, MH – Christopher Husmann, MH – Steven Woessner, S – John Lutjen, S – Christian Smith, L – Kevin Nardone
 
Against New Paltz All-Time
Vassar currently leads the series 25-22, dating back to 1989; the two teams have played every year since then. The longest winning streak for the Brewers was when they won six in a row from 2008 to 2010, while the longest winning streak for the Hawks was when they also won six in a row from 1991 to 1992. Vassar's last win came on Mar. 21, 2012. New Paltz has won the four meetings since then, including winning five-set and four-set contests last season.
 
Holding Them Down
The Brewers have really stepped it up on defense in recent games. In the UVC, Vassar is first in opponent service aces (0.81 per set), second in opponent kills (8.76 per set), second in opponent assists (8.03 per set), and fourth in opponent hitting percentage (.177)
 
Trey Ball
Sophomore libero Trey Cimorelli (Orchard Park, NY/Orchard Park) was huge for the Brewers against Hunter, posting a season-high 17 digs. On the season, Cimorelli leads the team with 144 digs, and is fourth in the UVC with 2.44 digs per set.
 
Busting Out
Against Hunter, Vassar had a season-high 71 kills, the most in a match since 2010. Four Brewers contributed double-digit kills, led by junior Reno Kriz (Breinigsville, PA/Parkland) who had a season-high 25 kills and hit .476 on the night.
 
One Time, Let's Go
With their 12 aces on Wednesday, the Brewers still lead the UVC and are ranked fifth nationally with 2.25 aces per set. Freshman setter Zechariah Lee (Santa Clarita, CA/Saugus) is first in the UVC and second nationally with 0.74 aces per set, while junior Erik Halberg is ninth in the UVC with 0.32 aces per set.
 
He's The Big Guy
Freshman middle hitter Matthew Knigge (New Egypt, NJ/New Egypt) had an impressive game against Hunter, recording 12 kills on a .450 hitting percentage, as well as a team-high seven blocks. On the season, Knigge leads the team with 67 total blocks, and is currently sixth in the UVC with 1.02 blocks per set.
 
On The Outside
Sophomore outside hitter Quinn Rutledge (Chesterfield, VA/Cosby) had a standout night for the Brewers, with a career-high 14 kills on a career-high 42 swings. Rutledge continues to become a bigger part of the offense each game, and currently is fourth on the team with 74 total kills.
 
Up Next
Next week, the Brewers travel to Massachusetts to take on Endicott on Friday at 5 p.m. The next day, Vassar has two more big matches, including a conference game against MIT at 1 p.m., before taking on Lasell at 3 p.m.