Men’s Volleyball Sweeps Saturday Tri-Match to Close Regular Season

NEW LONDON, N.H. – Regis College took care of business Saturday, sweeping both Colby-Sawyer College and Dean College at the Hogan Sports Center in Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) men's volleyball action to solidify its spot in the upcoming GNAC tournament.

Regis 3, Colby-Sawyer 0 (25-14, 25-14, 25-21)

Joseph Perez (Miami, Fla.) and Robert Burch (Coxsackie, N.Y.) led the Pride offensively with seven kills apiece as Tyrell Bucasas (Waialua, Hawaii) dished out 20 assists. Defensively, John Nangle (Lowell, Mass.) led the team at the net with four total blocks, and Marcello Cappuccio (Scotch Plains, N.J.) again paced the Regis backline with 12 digs.

Regis put together a 7-1 scoring run early in the first set, capped by kills from Burch and Nangle, to open a 9-3 advantage. After the Chargers closed to within three points at 14-11 on a solo block by Patrick Foley, the Pride closed out the opening set with an 11-3 scoring run, led by five kills from Perez.

Colby-Sawyer (4-22, 1-15 GNAC) scored the first two points of the second set, but Regis quickly responded with 10 straight points, led by two kills and two block assists from Francesco Buanne (Caserta, Italy). A series of Pride attack errors allowed the Chargers to pull within three points at 16-13, but Regis settled down and clinched the set with a 9-1 scoring run, capped by a service ace from Sam Segura-Suarez (Berwick, Pa.).

The Chargers stayed with the Pride throughout the third set, eventually holding a 19-16 lead after a Regis attack error. Regis rallied back, going on a 9-2 scoring run to close out the set and the match, punctuated by a kill from Burch and a service ace by Donovan Ross (Southbridge, Mass.).

Isaac Davies led the Chargers with five kills and two service aces, while Aiden Fortier finished with a team-high seven digs.

Regis 3, Dean 0 (25-14, 25-10, 25-11)

Perez stuffed the stat sheet for the Pride with 13 kills, a .550 hitting percentage, six service aces, and seven digs. Nangle contributed seven kills on a .545 hitting percentage as Bucasas distributed 34 assists. Ross added four service aces and eight digs, and Cappuccio led all players in the match with nine digs.

Regis raced out to a 10-1 lead in the first set, led by five kills from Perez, before Dean scored four of the next five points thanks in part to a kill and a service ace by Nick Carlson. Perez earned three straight service aces later in the set to extend the Pride lead to 23-11, and then Regis would clinch the opening set on kills by Burch and Chris Huynh (Methuen, Mass.).

The Pride started the second set by scoring nine of the first 10 points, led by three kills apiece by Perez and Buanne. Regis later rattled off a 13-2 scoring run, led by three kills from Nangle, as it eventually closed out the set thanks to two kills from Perez.

Regis scored five of the first six points of the third set, but Dean closed to within two points at 7-5 thanks in part to kills by Saski Sayue and Tyler Martins. Ross notched consecutive aces to increase the Pride lead to 12-6, and then Regis would finish out the set and the match with a 12-3 scoring run.

Regis College (12-16, 7-9 GNAC) ended up sixth in the final regular season league standings and will head to Nashua, N.H., to face third seed Rivier University in the first round of the GNAC Men's Volleyball Tournament Tuesday, April 11, beginning at 7 p.m.