(02-15-08)
Box Score
WEST HAVEN, Conn. -- A.J. Nally had 13 kills on .375 hitting and the Springfield College men's volleyball team served up seven aces in a 3-0 (30-26, 30-16, 30-17) win over University of New Haven in Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association Hay Division action at Charger Gymnasium Friday night.
Nally led all players with 13 kills and narrowly missed a double-double with nine digs for Division III's No. 4-ranked team Springfield, which improves to 10-2 overall and 3-0 in the EIVA. Cal Palumbo had eight kills on .538 hitting and added five block assists, while setter Eric Shoemaker had 20 assists before subbing out for the third game.
UNH falls in its EIVA opener and is now 6-4 overall. Tommy Musto had 11 kills to lead UNH, while Chris Lennon had two solo blocks and 15 assists on just 24 Charger kills.
UNH hit poorly for the match, with negative percentages in each of the first two games (-.200 and -.062). They combined for 21 hitting errors in the first two games.
Despite that, UNH hung tough in the first game, falling just 30-26. The game was tied at 20, but Springfield inched ahead 24-21 thanks to a pair of kills by A.J. Nally. UNH tried using a time out to stop the momentum, but committed an attack error coming out of the break to fall behind 25-21.
The Pride took control of game two behind a balanced attack. Palumbo and Nally each had three kills in the frame, while Frederickson and Yates had two apiece. Springfield led 13-10, but closed out the game on a 17-6 run.
In all, the Pride gained steam and won 47 of the final 70 points spanning games two and three. Again, the third game was tight at 16-13, but the Pride closed out the match on a 14-4 run and gave up three of those four points on service errors. Springfield hit .739 in the final frame (18-1-23).
This match was the first of a split home-and-home, so to speak, with UNH returning the trip up I-91 to play at Springfield on Tuesday, February 19.
