HOBOKEN, NJ (February 17, 2018) – The No. 12 Vassar College men's volleyball team once again flexed its muscles at the net with a hitting percentage of .304 while adding 11 blocks to up its United Volleyball Conference (UVC) winning streak to 11 with a four-set victory over New York University in play from Canavan Arena on the campus of Stevens Institute of Technology.
 
The Brewers were able to open up a tied match at one set apiece to earn the victory with scores of 25-20, 20-25, 25-15 and 25-19. The difference in the match came in the third set, as Vassar got its offense into gear by hammering down 11 kills on just 19 swings while holding NYU to .095 hitting. In the fourth, VC's hitting continued to be strong and the back row provided 10 digs to help the Brewer pull away.
 
The first set started quick for the No. 7 Violets (6-3, 0-1 UVC), earning six of the matches' opening eight points after a kill from Neil Ferraro. Vassar slowly worked itself back into the set and took its first lead at 13-12 as part of a 5-0 run on a kill from sophomore Kevin Ros.
 
NYU battled back to get to within one at 16-15, but the Brewer pulled back ahead thanks to back-to-back service aces from freshman Jefferson Waters. After NYU made the score 20-18, VC posted a quick 3-1 spurt highlighted by consecutive blocks by junior George Diehl and freshman Ryan Duchemin to give VC a comfortable lead to pull away for the opening set.
 
The second frame was back and forth through the middle point before Vassar pushed forward on a 3-0 run to take a 14-12 edge. NYU burst out of a timeout with four points in a row to take a 16-14 edge, holding the lead for the rest of the set. The Violets attacked at a .360 rate in the second set, its best of the match.
 
In the crucial third set, Vassar scored the first three points and led by eight at 18-10 after two straight kills from senior Matthew Knigge. The Brewers continued to add to their lead at 21-11 on another ace from Waters, and closed out the set on a finish from Duchemin.
 
NYU would storm out in the fourth set, looking to send the match the distance by taking a 6-3 lead but again the Brewers pushed back. Vassar would trail until a pivotal 5-0 run with NYU leading 11-9, taking a 14-11 edge after another kill from Duchemin. Up 23-19 late, Vassar used a kill from Diehl and two straight attacking errors by NYU to clinch the match.
 
VC has knocked off NYU in each of its last five meetings, as the Brewers currently sit atop the conference standings. Ros was spectacular for Vassar Saturday, hitting .611 to tie for the squad-best in kills with 13. The sophomore also added eight digs to lead the Brewers. Knigge added 13 kills as well, posting six digs and seven total blocks.
 
Senior Zechariah Lee handed out 35 more assists for the Brewers, also finishing with three service aces, four kills and three digs. Diehl was steady with eight kills, six digs and six assisted blocks, and Duchemin ended up with four kills and four blocks.
 
Alex Li led the Violets with 13 kills, while sophomore Evan Lindley also posted 11 kills for NYU. Vassar will now battle No. 2 Stevens Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m. in a huge UVC match-up in Hoboken, NJ.