Men’s Volleyball Sweeps Emerson in GNAC Quarterfinals

NASHUA, N.H. – The No. 3 Rivier men's volleyball team produced a .412 team hitting percentage thanks to 40 assists from Neil Rea to sweep sixth seed, Emerson, in the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Quarterfinals on Tuesday night at the Muldoon Center.

The Raiders won by set scores of 25-20, 25-18, 25-17 to advance to the semifinal round with an 18-13 record. The Lions concluded their season 6-17.

Rivier went on a 4-0 run early in the first set to take a 10-8 lead, forcing Emerson to call a timeout. The Raiders' lead would extend to five at 19-14 following a three-point swing, which included an ace from Matthew McCloskey. Ryan Peace and Chris Lezon would each record two kills following the final Emerson timeout to secure the 1-0 match lead. Rea dished out 17 assists as the team hit .448 in the opening frame.

In a second set with 13 tie scores and four lead changes, Rivier would put together a 10-3 after being tied at 15-all to steam past the Lions for a set two triumph. McCloskey hit .857 with six kills while Sokunbuth Ly hit .500 with six kills of his own. Lezon notched two aces in the set.

The Raiders led from the get-go in the third, allowing for multiple substitutions. Tyler Dickinson, Ethan Soltis, Aidan Combs, and Justin Barish all made appearances as Rivier cruised to victory. Peace had five block assists in the set while Isaac Borges recorded four.

Rea's 40 assists were a career-best for a three-set match. Ly hit .478 on the outing with a match-high 15 kills, followed by McCloskey's 11 kills at a .588 clip. Peace recorded no errors on 11 attempts, notching eight kills. Lezon had two aces and six kills.

The Raiders finished with six team blocks as Peace, Borges, McCloskey, and Ly each contributed to the defensive efforts. Borges' seven digs were a team-high. Peter White handed most of the serve-receive, posting a .947 percentage.

Rivier improved to 24-0 in the all-time series against Emerson, which dates back to 2012.

It will be a familiar matchup for the Raiders in the GNAC Semifinals when they face off against the second seed, Lasell, on the road on Thursday, April 11. The two teams have met in the second round of the conference tournament the past two seasons, with the Lasers prevailing in both contests. Thursday's match will begin at 7:00 p.m. at the Lasell Athletic Center.