Galloway, NJ - Stevens traveled to Stockton for a tournament this past Sunday for multiple matches against some great opponents.
The first game of the day was Stevens A team against TCNJ, which would end up being the most difficult opponent the A team faced. In the first set the Ducks were shaky on defense, and were making some frustrating mistakes – missing serves, miscommunications, and poor timing on the blocks. But throughout the set Stevens was able to turn the game around in their favor. Thanks to multiple kills by middle blocker Max Metzner, and well-placed hits by seniors Alexei Nikiforov and Harry de Haas, the Ducks were able to fix up their previous mistakes and win the first set 25 – 19.  In the second set, TCNJ picked up a lot of momentum through powerful hits from their outside hitters. But the blocks of Stevens own middle blockers and pin hitters closed in as the game progressed. Stevens won the second set in a close game 25 – 22.
The next game for the Stevens A team was against Rowan University. The first set was handily won by the Ducks, due to numerous service aces by Alexei Nikiforov. Despite some errors in the later stages of the set, Stevens won 25 – 22 in a game that was less close than the score would indicate. However, the second set against Rowan was long and drawn out. After some early momentum for the Ducks - from hits by middle blocker Paul Leible and technical sets by Kevin Herbst – unfortunately the scrappy defense from Rowan kept them in the game. Eventually each team began trading points back-and-forth in a long overtime set, which the Ducks ended up losing 30 – 32. Frustrated, Stevens turned it around in their favor to easily take the last set 15 – 10.
Immediately after, the Stevens A team wrapped up their day with another 3 set match against Stockton University. In the first set, the Ducks were beginning to show their exhaustion from the previous sets. Sloppy defense and missed serves are the key reasons why Stevens dropped the first set in a frustrating loss 23 – 25. However, Stevens quickly turned around their spirits to pick up 2 more wins, 25 – 22 and 15 – 10.
The Stevens B team also played in 3 matches at Stockton. In their first match of the day, they played against Rutgers New Brunswick. During a dominant first set, setter Justin Cheng made great use of hitters Tyler Brunquell and Miles Bird for a Stevens win 25 – 13. However, it Rutgers quickly began to warm up and utilize their own offensive prowess to pick up wins in a close second and third set. Stevens B lost the second set 23 – 25 and lost the third set 13 – 15. This was a frustrating loss for the Ducks, and they had trouble getting around Rutgers scrappy defense.
The next match for the Stevens B team was against TCNJ, the same team Stevens A played earlier in the day. Although the sets were close, unfortunately Stevens B had trouble blocking the opposing middle attacks and were not able to extend the rallies enough to take a win. The Stevens B team lost to TCNJ 18 – 25 and 14 – 25. TCNJ is a very physical team that unfortunately the Stevens B team was not able to match up against.
Finally, the Stevens B team ended the tournament against Seton Hall University. As the last game of the day, both teams were very tired and were making lots of mistakes. Despite falling behind later in the first set, the Ducks were able to overcome the point differential through good communication on defense and effective serving. Stevens B won the first set 26 – 24. The second set against Seton Hall was not as competitive as the first set, and thanks to a number of service aces by Cary Qi, the Stevens B team was able to walk away from Stockton with a dominant win 25-18.
Altogether, Stevens Mens Club Volleyball had a very successful day at Stockton, and despite some frustrating losses from the B team, both teams had good showings. The A team went 3-0 against their opponents and the B team went 1-2. The Ducks will travel to play against Drexel University in the following weeks as one of their last regular season matches before moving onto postseason.