CAMBRIDGE, MA -- Two late-game rallies fell short as Lesley University lost 3-0 (25-9, 25-19, 25-21) to Elms College in the Lynx home opener Thursday night in New England Collegiate Conference men's volleyball play. 

Christian Domingo (Los Angeles, CA/Delphi Academy) led the Lynx (0-3, 0-1 NECC) with nine digs and tied Max Hoevenaar (Orlando, FL/Castle Christian) with a team-best seven kills. Setter Melvin Morales tied for match-high honors with 13 assists.

For Elms (4-1, 1-0 NECC), Bryson Rainey (Brookline, MA/Brookline) totaled seven kills and a match-best 14 digs, while Stephen Cameron Newington, CT/Newington) led all players with eight kills and added 11 digs. 

Two of Daniel Lebron's (San Juan, PR/Adianez) match-high five service aces helped Elms establish an 11-1 lead to open the night, and consecutive kills from Rainey and Cameron extended the lead to 16-4. Two more Lebron aces anchored a 7-1 run to close out the Blazers 25-9 opening set win.

A Domingo kill tied Game 2 at 5-5, but Elms then scored eight straight, with five different Blazers combining for five kills in the team's 8-0 run. Domingo erred in aiding the Blazers to a 21-11 lead before throwing down two kills that opened a 7-3 Lesley run. The Lynx forced an Elms timeout after cutting the margin to 24-19, but a Herbin Berreondo service error out of the timeout sent the Blazers to victory.

Berreondo atoned for his Game 2 mishap by opening Game 3 with three straight service aces, but Elms responded with a 10-2 run compliments of two aces from Cameron. Two Alex Zhitnik (West Hartford, CT/Conard) aces pulled the Lynx to within 12-11, and a Cameron error tied the contest at 12-12.

Kills from Rainey and freshman Angel Castro (Carolina, PR/Vocaaona para Adultos) made it a 14-12 game, but even a narrow two-point cushion would be enough for the Blazers this time, as the Lynx fought back but never so much as re-tied the contest. A Kordel Latimer (Lynn, MA/Lynn English) kill on a feed from Lebron was the clincher, as Elms won by the score of 25-21.

Lesley returns to play on Monday night, playing host to Emerson at 8:00 p.m. Elms takes on Newbury on Saturday.