Poughkeepsie, NY - The #9 Vassar College Men's Volleyball team heads to top-seeded NYU on Friday for the UVC Championship as the third-seeded Brewers will take on sixth-seeded #16 Hobart in a quarterfinal matchup beginning at 7:30 p.m. Live video and live stats will be available for all matches at the UVC Championship.

#9 Vassar At A Glance

• Vassar enters the postseason at 21-5 overall and 4-3 in conference play after winning the first 12 matches of the season, which was the best start to a campaign in program history.
• The Brewers have taken on 13 nationally ranked opponents this season and have posted a 8-5 record in those matches, including a sweep of #2 Springfield last Saturday.
• VC is led by three All-UVC selections as Second Team honoree Gavin Akoto ranks second on the team in total blocks with 59 and is tied for fourth in kills with 126. The senior also ranks tied for fifth in service aces with 12 and has lifted 30 digs this season. Akoto was named Co-UVC Player of the Week on February 10 and has recorded a block in all but two matches played this season.
• Second Team selection Walter Birnbaum leads the team with 178 kills and ranks fifth on the squad in blocks with 30. The sophomore also ranks in the top-five in digs with 72 and has landed 11 aces. Birnbaum has recorded eight matches with double-digit kills and buried a career-high 20 winners in a triumph over nationally-ranked Nichols on January 25. He also lifted a career-high 10 digs in back-to-back matches against Arcadia and Misericordia.
• Honorable Mention honoree Armaan Desai ranks tied for fifth in the conference in total blocks with 72 and is second in blocks per set at 1.06. Desai is also tied for fourth on the team in kills with 126 and is third on the squad in aces with 16. Desai was recently named the Co-UVC Player of the Week on Monday and was tabbed the AVCA Division III National Player of the Week yesterday following a big week against #1 NYU and #2 Springfield.
• Senior Payne Lounsbery leads the squad in assists with 358 along with aces with 46 while sophomore Parker Schoenl has recorded 271 assists and senior Nick Villamil has handed out 220 assists.
• Senior Billy Fan ranks second on the team in aces with 35 and is second on the team in kills with 156 and digs withg 121 along with classmate Tobias Clark adding 95 winners and 12 aces.
• Sophomore Tucker Shearn leads the team in digs with 170 while Lounsbery ranks third in the digs category with 115.

Previewing #16 Hobart

• The Statesmen concluded the regular season with a 20-8 overall record and finished 3-4 in UVC action. Hobart began the season 17-2 overall before dropping six of the next seven with five of those matches being conference matches.
• Hobart is led by UVC Co-Player of the Year and former Vassar standout Andrew Kim, who has buried 345 kills to go along with 42 aces, 38 blocks and 174 digs.
• Daniel Sappia is second on the team in kills with 208, aces with 23 while being third on the squad in digs with 135.
• Noah DeLong has added 202 winners, 34 blocks and 16 aces along with Alain Malcolm leading the team in blocks with 66.
• Benjamin Lincoln is the team leader in assists with 526 while Zack Farren has added 357 assists on the season.
• Gavin Meador leads the squad in digs with 218.

Regular Season Matchup

• Hobart was victorious at home in the regular season matchup in four sets as the Statesmen won 25-22, 25-21, 19-25, 25-23 in Geneva.
• Kim led the way with 15 kills, three aces, five blocks and nine digs along with 13 kills from DeLong and 11 winners from Sappia for Hobart.
• Clark and Fan each buried 10 kills each while Akoto chipped in five winners and three blocks for the Brewers.
• In the two regular season matchups to date, both teams have won on their home floor in four sets.

UVC History

• Vassar has won the UVC Championship twice (2021, 2023) and reached the championship match a season ago against NYU.
• Hobart is making their second appearance in the championship after bowing out in the quarterfinals against Nazareth last season.

What's At Stake

• The winner of Friday's match will advance to the semifinal round to take on second-seeded Nazareth at 5:00 p.m. at the Paulson Center.

UVC Championship Schedule

Friday, April 11 – First Round
No. 5 SUNY New Paltz vs. No. 4 St. John Fisher University – 5 p.m.
No. 6 Hobart College vs. No. 3 Vassar College – 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, April 12 – Semifinals
Winner of No. 4 St. John Fisher/No. 5 New Paltz at No. 1 NYU – 2:30 p.m.
Winner of No. 3 Vassar/No. 6 Hobart vs. No. 2 Nazareth – 5 p.m.

Sunday, April 13 - Championship
Winner of Semifinal 1 vs. Winner of Semifinal 2 – 2 p.m 

Ticket Information
 

Adults	$6
Students/Veterans/Children/Seniors	$4