NEW PALTZ, N.Y. - In the battle of top-five teams, the No. 3 Vassar men's volleyball team split the doubleheader against No. 4 New Paltz on Wednesday evening at the Hawk Center. The Hawks took the first game in five sets, winning 3-2 (25-23, 19-25, 25-22, 17-25, 7-15). Then in the second match, the Brewers swept 3-0 (25-21, 25-21, 25-18). Vassar now moves to 3-1 overall and 2-1 in the UVC. New Paltz goes to 2-2 overall and 2-1 in the conference. 

In the opening match, Vassar won the first set 25-23, jumping out to an early 7-1 lead. New Paltz tacked on a few points to make it 8-4, but senior Ryan Duchemin (Maitland, FL) sent in a kill to push the Vassar advantage to five. The Hawks rallied right after, using a 5-0 run capped off by two kills from Adam Brawn to tie 9-9. 

The set remained close before sophomore Adam Gulick (Buffalo, NY) fired in a kill to spur four unanswered Brewer points. Another kill from Gulick and a block by Duchemin and Joseph Harrington (San Diego, CA) put Vassar up 18-12. A few Vassar miscues allowed the Hawks to come back and made it a one-point contest at 21-20. The teams traded scores for the rest of the set, but the Brewers secured set point following a New Paltz service error. 

Roles reversed in the second, and this time, the Hawks jumped out to a 7-2 lead. New Paltz held the edge the entire set, but two consecutive kills from sophomore Andrew Kim (Ranch Santa Margarita, CA) and a double block by Gavin van Beveren (Alpharetta, GA) and Vaughn Ramsey (Denver, CO) made it 17-19. Unfortunately, the momentum did not carry over for Vassar as New Paltz responded with three-straight points of their own. The Hawks then closed out the set to win 25-19. 

Vassar claimed the third 25-22. Both teams struggled to find any rhythm early on, with four errors between each in the first seven points. New Paltz took a one-point lead, but kills from Duchemin and Kim and then a Jake Kaplan (Leesburg, VA) put Vassar up 6-4. The Brewers held a narrow position over New Paltz and used a 5-1 span comprised of a Kim ace and kills from Gulick and van Beveren to jump up 13-8. The Hawks did not go away that easily, though, responding with a 6-1 run to tie it up 14-14. The set tied six more times before a Hawks error put the Brewers up 23-22. Kaplan hit in a kill, and then Kim sealed the stage with a service ace. 

After taking a 12-11 lead midway through the fourth, Vassar gave up five unanswered and could not retake the lead. The Hawks pushed their mark to 21-15. Kim knocked in a kill to cut the lead to five before the Hawks went 4-1 to close it out and force the fifth set. 

Vassar fell behind 5-2 in the extra but pulled within three after Colin Jones' (San Diego, CA) kill made it 10-7. That was the last Vassar point of the match, though, as the Hawks finished off a 5-0 run with two aces to pick up the win. 

Neither side found success hitting with the holding a slight advantage at .188 percent as opposed to Vassar's .122 percent. Kim led the Brewers with 15 kills and three service aces, while van Beveren tallied eight kills and four blocks. Gulick added seven kills and three blocks. AJ Erickson (San Diego, CA) dished out 24 assists, and Matt Usui (Rolling Hills Estates, CA) topped the team with 11 digs. 

For the Hawks, Brendan Spulnick recorded a match-high 20 kills with five blocks. Matthew Grace had four aces with 32 assists, while Robert Nolan grabbed ten digs. 

Needing a break after a grueling five-set opening match, the Brewers took care of business, winning 3-0 in the second game. Things stayed close the first two sets, with Vassar edging out New Paltz 25-23 both times. After the Hawks used a run to tie it 17-17 in the first, a can Beveren kill started the Brewers' own 4-0 run that included a Kaplan kill, a Joe Hendrickson (Feeding Hills, MA) solo block, and a Hendrickson and van Beveren block assist. Vassar would not give up the lead after that. 

New Paltz never went ahead in the second set but was able to keep it close. A service ace from Jones put Vassar ahead 14-8, and then both squads went back-and-forth the following eight points. Kills from Kim and van Beveren put the Brewers up 20-14, and the Hawks pulled within three before van Beveren launched in the final kill. 

The Brewers controlled again in the third, taking a 15-9 lead midway through the set. New Paltz made in 18-14, but Duchemin sliced in an ace, and Kim tallied another kill to keep the Hawks at bay. Duchemin wrapped up the night with the final kill to give the Brewers to split. 

Hitting improved in the second match, with the Brewers averaging .414 percent, while the Hawks struck .270 percent. Van Beveren topped the Brewers with 15 kills, and Kim had 12. Erickson improved his career-best in assist total with 29. Usui led the team with seven digs.

Vassar next travels to Elmira, NY, for a neutral site contest against UVC opponent Nazareth on Sat. Mar. 27. The Brewers take on the Golden Flyers at 3 p.m. and 5:30 p.m.