CAMBRIDGE, MA – Lesley dropped to 0-8 with a 3-0 loss to Johnson & Wales, 25-14, 25-22, 25-16 Monday night.

            JWU freshman Shawn Kennedy (West Barnstable, MA/Barnstable) led all players with 10 kills, while Alex Viera (Bay Shore, NY/Bay Shore) added eight kills and nine digs. Erick Minnich (Concord, CA/Concord) also went for eight kills and totaled nine blocks as the Wildcats evened their record at 3-3 on the season.

            For the Lynx, Zachary Almeida-Beers (Rehoboth, MA/Dighton-Rehoboth) threw down a team-high nine kills on 17 attempts, adding two block assists. Freshman Brian Diah (Abuja, Nigeria/American International School) chipped in with a pair of block assists, and both William Lau (Charlestown, MA/Boston Latin) and Tyler Reeves (Coventry, CT/Coventry) contributed 10 digs.

            A Viera service ace put the Wildcats out in front 10-3 in the opener. Diah's first block of the day pulled the Lynx to within six at 13-7, but a Minnich service ace capped a 6-1 Johnson & Wales run that closed out the 25-14 win.

            Lesley jumped out to an early advantage in the middle set, going ahead 9-6 on a Christian Domingo (Los Angeles, CA/College of Canyons) solo block. A Kennedy kill sparked a 6-0 run that pulled the Wildcats back on top at 12-9, and they never looked back in a 25-22 Game 2 victory.

            The Lynx started strong again in Game 3, jumping out to a 3-0 lead with Siragusa at serve. Johnson & Wales responded with a 6-0 run, scoring four straight with Dan Struebing (Coventry, RI/Coventry) serving. A Minnich serve error pulled the Lynx to within two, at 10-8, but the Wildcats scored the next four points, three with Henrique DeBrito (Mamora Bay, Antigua/Florida Air) at serve, running away with the 25-16 win.

            Lesley returns to action Thursday night at 7:00 in New England Collegiate Conference play at Newbury. The Wildcats enjoy eight days off before playing host to Mount Ida on February 9 in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference match-up.