CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – Visiting Emerson College defeated host Lesley University 3-0 (25-16, 25-11, 25-13) this evening in NCAA Division III Men's Volleyball action at the Nicholas Athletic Center. The win is the second for the Lions over the Lynx this season as they secure the sweep of the two-match season series as they improve to an even 4-4 on the year. The loss drops the lynx to 0-7 overall.
Emerson junior Jackson Wiley (Los Angeles, Calif.) led the charge for the guests as he slammed home a match-high 17 kills while swinging a robust .536 from the floor. Wiley also added eight digs to his line of the defense end. Freshman Nick Rusk (Weston, Fla.) and junior Brendan McGonigle (Los Angeles, Calif.) finished with seven kills apiece while McGonigle led all players with 27 assists. As a team, the Lions swung a season-high .436 from the floor.
Lesley sophomore Tyler Burns (Newton, Pa.) finished with double-digit kills form the third time in four matches as he notched a team-high 11 to go with his five digs. Junior Jess Cherry (Lancaster, Pa.) added six kills and five digs for the hosts while sophomore setter Mitchel Ulacco (Winchester, Mass.) dished out a team-best 19 assists. Fellow sophomore Jacob DiDomenico (N. Providence, R.I.) added four kills and a block and junior C. Jay Sutton (Billerica, Mass.) recorded a team-high ten digs on the night.
Trailing 8-3 early on in the opening set, the Lynx used an 8-5 spurt capped by a kill from freshman Patrick O'Connor (Easton, Conn.) to pull within two 13-11. That would be as close as the Lynx would get in the set, as the Lions rallied to the first set win with a 12-3 streak. Wiley was on fire from the get-go as he connected for eight kills in the first.
Lesley jumped out to a 4-0 lead to open the second set as Burns connected for a pair of kills, but the lead did not last long as the Lions answered with six straight points to reclaim a lead that they would not relinquish the rest of the night. Wiley was instrumental to the Emerson offense once again as he slammed home eight more kills in the second.
The Lions continued their momentum in the third set, scoring six of the first eight points before rolling to the 25-13 set win for the 3-0 sweep.
The Lynx are back in action on Monday as they open up New England Collegiate Conference play with a match with Newbury College at the Nicholas Athletic Center. First serve is scheduled for 8:00p. The Lions will travel to Regis College on Saturday for a tri-match with the Pride and Southern Vermont College at 1:00p.