This past weekend the Stevens Men's Club Volleyball Team participated in a tri-match at Seton Hall University. Stevens A team played against Princeton University and Scranton University. Stevens B team played against Montclair State University and Scranton University. All matches were determined to be best of 5 sets.
The first match of the day for Stevens A was against Princeton University. This was not something Stevens was looking forward to, since they had just beaten Princeton the previous weekend. Princeton had a good outside hitter, solid setter, and a middle that could jump through the roof. Stevens, unfortunately, was missing their outside Henry Fung. Stevens started the game strong; they were not about to allow Princeton to take the first set like last weekend. Oustide hitter, Tim Luft, and setter, Kris Knight, had some beautiful connections, leaving Princeton stunned and unable to block well. Stevens pulled out a win for the first set 25-18. Thanks to precision passing from Zach Salisbury and great digs from Brian Gao, Stevens won the second set as well 25-16. In the third set, Austin Hong sadly suffered a sprained thumb from hitting the ball too hard. Harry de Haas had some monster swings to make up for the loss of Austin, and the third set went similarly to the first two. Stevens won 25-17 and won the match quickly.
The second match of the day for Stevens A was against Scranton. Scranton was short-handed with a total of only eight players. They possessed an experienced libero and a high-flying outside. The Stevens B team also happened to have a match at the same time on the other court, so Stevens A was forced to coach themselves. This proved to be a challenge the Ducks were apt to handle. In the first set, Kris Knight began to really connect with middles Paul "Rambo" Leible and Max Metzner, both able to smash quick sets past the block. The Ducks won the set 25-23. Stevens continued to play at a high standard taking the second set 25-16. Again, Scranton was inconsistent, and Stevens won the third set 25-15.
The Stevens B team's first match was against Montclair State. Stevens had a plethora of players for this outing. From watching Montclair's first match, it was clear they were inexperienced, but a fun and scrappy team, nonetheless. Stevens began the game hot, with big swings from Kendall Peretz. Stevens won the first set 25-12. In the next set, setter Justin Cheng fed buttery balls to Tyler Brunquell at middle. He made precision kills to the corners of the court. Stevens took the second set 25-17. Coach Dritan made sure everyone would get playing time, and they did. Louis Canter played outside and had a great tool shot off the hand of Montclair's opposite. Lukasz made a debut at opposite, with an outstanding foot dig, leading to a point for Stevens. Miles Bird had a few great swings and a couple kills. Terrence Meekins played outside in the third set as well, getting a few nice kills across the court, including a game-winning one. Stevens won the third set 25-15.
The Stevens B second match was against Scranton University. Scranton seemed to be in a bad mood after losing to Stevens A, and did not have much energy. Cary Qi pushed past the block on multiple occasions, winning points for the Ducks. Stevens won 25-18. In the second set, Jake Roberts carried the offensive weight, while Pablo del Puerto made some great digs. Stevens won the second set 25-17. In the third set, Dan Tuder dug the ball for Justin Cheng to make some godly sets. However, it wasn't enough. Stevens had a lapse in their play and lost the set 25-21. Stevens was determined to win the fourth set and allow the A team to go home. Kendall and Jake Roberts had swift swings on the left side. Jake Burger finally started heating up, blocking Scranton's outside hitter and smacking a quick back set to push the Ducks to the win 25-17.
