POUGHKEEPSIE, NY (February 22, 2017) — The No. 6 Vassar College men's volleyball team (12-6) saw its six-match winning streak coming to an end with a three-set loss to No. 1 Springfield College (13-1) at Kenyon Hall on Wednesday, 26-16, 25-23, 25-13.
Matthew Knigge led the Brewers with nine kills and four blocks, while also adding an ace; Zechariah Lee paced the squad with 21 assists and eight digs, while also adding two blocks; and Trey Cimorelli posted seven digs and two assists. Cimorelli needs just two more digs to become the second Brewer in program history to join the 1,000-dig club.
The Pride posted 44 kills on 41 assists, while the Brewers posted 25 on 23. Springfield had 34 digs to VC's 23, while the Brewers had three aces to the Pride's one.
Luis Vega led Springfield with 14 kills, while Luis Garcia Rubio paced the pack with 36 assists and three blocks. Eli Irizarry Pares posted a match-high 10 digs, while also adding two assists.
Springfield, which has surrendered just five sets so far this season, jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first set. VC knotted the game at six on back-to-back points. Lizana registered a kill from Lee to pull VC within 6-5 before Springfield's Kyle Jasuta's attack error made it 6-all. The Pride ended the first set with energy, ultimately taking it 25-16.
Vassar started the second set with a 5-3 run, highlighted by Knigge's kill from Lee. Springfield slowly began to chip away, ultimately taking a 10-7 lead on Ricardo Padilla Ayala's kill from Garcia Rubio.
The action was nip-and-tuck, as Vassar tied at at 22-all on a 4-1 run. Knigge and Lizana highlighted the surge with kills from Lee.
Lee assisted on VC's final kill of the set, setting up Auerbach, who made it 24-23, but Jasuta sealed the set with a termination from Garcia Rubio, 25-23.
The third set saw three ties and two lead changes before the Pride pulled away for the win. VC scored five straight points for a 6-5 advantage. Knigge posted back-to-back kills to cap the burst.
Springfield responded with a 4-1 run to take the lead for good, 9-7. The Pride kept their foot on the pedal to ultimately take the third and final set, 25-13.
Vassar welcomes The Sage Colleges to Kenyon Hall on Thursday, Feb. 23, with the action beginning at 7 p.m.
—VASSAR—
