POUGHKEEPSIE, NY (March 23, 2018) – The No. 12 Vassar College men's volleyball, fresh off a 3-1 win over Hunter College down in New York City, will jump right back on the floor this weekend with a pair of big United Volleyball Conference (UVC) matches against No. 5 New Paltz and The Sage Colleges.
 
Game Details
Opponent: vs. No. 5 New Paltz (15-5, 6-1 UVC) & The Sage Colleges (8-13, 2-5 UVC)
Site: Poughkeepsie, NY
Facility: Kenyon Hall
Date: March 24-25, 2018
Time: 4 p.m. Saturday; 2:30 p.m.
Live Coverage: (Live Stats) (Live Video)
 
Last Time Out: The Brewers started slow at Hunter on Thursday afternoon, falling to the Hawks in the opening set due to some serving struggles. VC rebounded though, taking the next three games as senior Matthew Knigge hammered down 20 kills while junior George Diehl added a season-best 15 terminations as well.
 
A Look At The Brewers (14-6, 4-1 UVC):
 

• The Brewers are riding a five-match win streak coming into the weekend, having earned wins over two ranked opponents over that stretch including No. 4 UC-Santa Cruz.
• Vassar still holds the nation's top blocks per set number, chalking up 2.65 rejections a game. Vassar also led Division III in that category last year as well.
• Senior setter Zechariah Lee is currently eighth in the nation and second in the UVC in assists per set with 9.97. He also ranks third at Vassar with 3,625 assists all-time.
• VC has dominated the second set this year, posting a 14-6 mark in the opening frame. The Brewers are also 8-3 in the fourth game.
• Matthew Knigge continues to climb the all-time rankings for kills at Vassar, as he now has the seventh-most in program history with 1177, just 26 behind Dave Paine '02 for sixth and 27 behind John Chasey '96 for fifth.
• Vassar is 11^th in the nation in kills per set with 12.37, while its hitting percentage of .255 is 16^th in the country and fourth in the UVC.
• Knigge leads the Brewers with 307 kills and 4.45 per set, both UVC highs, while sophomore Kevin Ros has added 2.20 terminations per game.
• Diehl has done a little of everything for Vassar, ranking in the top four on the team in kills, aces, blocks and digs.
• Head coach Richard Gary has 87 career wins combined at Vassar and Wells College in men's volleyball. When combining his women's victories at Wells, Gary has 128 all-time coaching victories.

 
A Look At The No. 5 Hawks (15-5, 6-1 UVC):
 

• The Hawks have risen in the AVCA Top 15 Division III poll thanks to wins in their last four matches, including a 3-1 win over No. 10 NYU and a 3-0 win over No. 2 Stevens Institute of Technology.
• New Paltz is currently in a stretch of playing four straight ranked opponents, along with a seven out of nine game span against ranked squads.
• The Hawks have one of the most potent offenses in the nation, posting 12.85 kills per set, leading the UVC and third in Division III.
• Setter Matthew Grace is one of the best setters in the country, as his team is hitting .271 as a group.
• Nick Smith ranks third in the UVC and 11^th in Division III in kills per set with 3.57, while Ryan Cole has come on lately and is hammering down 3.09 terminations a game.
• New Paltz does a nice job sharing the ball, posting 12.38 assists per set, second-most in the country.
• Libero Robert Nolan leads the team with 1.97 digs per set.
• The rivalry with Vassar and New Paltz is as strong as it's ever been, as the teams have split the 52 all-time meets. VC knocked off New Paltz last year in the regular season, but the Hawks knocked Vassar out of both the UVC and NCAA Tournaments.

 
A Look At The Gators (8-13, 2-5 UVC):
 

• Sage is in its first season in the United Volleyball Conference, and has already captured a pair of wins over fellow first-year member St. John Fisher and Bard College.
• The Gators have struggled a bit lately though, falling in seven of their last eight with the lone win coming against St. John Fisher on March 11.
• Sage has a solid defensive unit, posting 9.66 digs per set, which ranks second in the UVC.
• Scott Sanders has been great this season, as he ranks third in the country in hitting percentage at .460 while also posting 2.21 kills per game out of the middle.
• Ryan Guyton leads the team with 3.13 terminations a game, while Bailey Cecchi is 10^th in the UVC with 2.83 offensive finishes per set.
• Sage runs a 6-2 offense, as freshman Ryan Jennings and junior Austin Laverty have shared setting duties to combine for 10.08 assists per game.
• Senior libero Casey Fitzpatrick leads the team with 2.94 digs per game, and is 17^th nationally in the category.
• Vassar holds a 5-1 all-time record against Sage, as Vassar took last year's meeting in Poughkeepsie 25-13, 25-22 and 25-18.

 
Up Next: Vassar will be back on the road next weekend to finish UVC action at Elmira College with a possible chance to host the UVC Tournament on the line, taking on Elmira College and Bard College Friday-Saturday, March 30-31 in Elmira, NY.