Newton, Mass. (4/4/2013) – The Lasell College men's volleyball program dropped their second straight Great Northeast Conference game as they lost a heartbreaker in five sets to Emmanuel College, 25-17, 20-25, 25-23, 18-25, and 13-15. The Lasers fall to 5-7 in conference play while going to 12-13 on the season. The Saints go to 16-13 overall while bumping their conference record to 11-2.
Junior Dan Raffol (Natick, Mass.) led the Lasers offense registering a double-double, as he had 12 kills and 10 digs on the night. Senior Alex Mill (Danville, N.H.) followed along with 10 kills and six digs, while classmate Chris Burns (Chelmsford, Mass.) tallied a team-high 13 digs in the loss.
Zach Whitermore (Whitehall, Pa.) helped the Saints get the win as he also registered a double-double with 10 digs and a match-high 18 kills. Ashanti Jackson (Sacramento, Calif.) tallied 13 kills and nine digs, meanwhile Nick Updike (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) had a match-high 49 assists.
The Saints would start the night by taking an early 5-2 lead before Lasell rallied back to assume control and make it 8-7 after going on a 6-2 run. A kill by Whitermore would tie the first set at 8, before taking a brief lead, at 10-9. Emmanuel would call a timeout, but not before the Lasers exploded to 20-13 lead following an 11-3 run. Both teams would exchange serves but Lasell would eventually take the opening set 25-17.
Again Emmanuel started the set with an early lead, this time jumping out to a 7-2 lead that forced the Lasell bench to call a timeout. Five straight points followed for the Lasers which brought the score even at 7-7. Once more, the teams would battle each other exchanging serves but never relinquishing a lead of more than two points. With the score standing at 16-14 for Saints, Lasell again decided to call timeout, however this time Emmanuel took advantage and padded their lead with four straight points to make it, 20-14 thanks in part to a pair of kills by Whitermore. The Lasers would claw themselves back to get within two at 20-18, but the Saints would ultimately win the set 25-20 and tie the match at 1-1.
The third set began with Lasell taking an early 6-3 lead, before an Emmanuel rally and a kill by Wyatt Cooper (Ridgefield, Conn.) made it 6-6. Both opponents struggled to establish a comfortable lead as they would alternate the services. Finally, with the Lasers trailing 18-16, they were able to score four straight point to take the lead and make it 20-18. A back and forth match would ensue until the very end when Lasell would take the third set 25-23.
Emmanuel would take the fourth set 25-18, after taking an early lead. They only gave up control to Lasell once as they made it 7-6 and in early the going, but the Saints grabbed it back and never looked over their shoulder as they pushed the match to go the distance.
In the final set, both teams engaged in a tight race to be the first to 15. Lasell would assume the first lead with a kill by Drew Caruso (Haverhill, Mass.) to make it 3-1. Kills from Ryan Kessler (Santa Clarita, Calif.) and Whitermore, would help the Saints take a 5-4 lead. The Lasers would have an 8-7 lead as they switched the sides of net. Lasers miscues and a score by Kessler gave the visitors a slim 10-9 edge that was followed by a timeout from the Lasell. Caruso's kill assisted by Ryan Jackson would knot action up at 10. The hosts would eventually take the lead as an attack error by Zach Whitermore made it 13-12, but Whitermore would make up for it as he immediately made things even at 13. Emmanuel would take the deciding set 15-13.
The Saints and Lasers will wrap up their regular season on Saturday, April 6 against conference opponents. Emmanuel will be traveling to New Haven to take on Albertus Magnus, while Lasell faces-off against Wentworth and Johnson & Wales in a tri-match at Wentworth.