#11 ranked Rivier Raiders Trip up Gulls 3-0

Beverly, Mass. – The #11 ranked Rivier College men's volleyball earned a road win over Endicott 3-0 (25-14, 25-18, 25-16) in a non-division NECVA match at MacDonald Gymnasium Thursday evening.

Rivier (29-8) was led by senior outside hitter Jared Andreozzi (Barrington, R.I.) who tallied a match-high 14 kills for a Raiders squad that sported a .448 hit percentage as a team.

Endicott's (21-12) middle blockers Travis Netheron (Waukegan, Ill.) and Joshua Bruno (Andover, Mass.) carried the Gulls offensively with eight and seven kills, respectively.

The Raiders controlled the pace of the match through each of the three sets, never facing a deficit larger than three points. Blocking proved to be a crucial part of their game as Rivier totaled 12.0 team blocks with senior John Furka (Massapequa, N.Y.) compiling four solo and two assisted stops at the net. Junior Alex Xenidis (Shelton, Conn.) and freshman Aaron Almario (Alhambra, Calif.) also made their presence known defensively with four and three block assists apiece.

In the setting game, Raiders sophomore Steve Visentin (Cheshire, Conn.) dished out 32 assists while on the other side of the net, Gulls setters Jeremy Schlosser (Emmaus, Pa.) and Carter Roche (Clifton Park, N.Y.) combined for 27.

Other offensive impact players for the Raiders included freshman outside hitter Sam Kazlas (Allentown, Pa.) who struck eight kills with just two errors. Xenidis and Almario also contributed, tallying six kills each in the win.

Endicott junior outside hitter Jeremy Siden (Natick, Mass.) added six kills and a solo block for the Blue and Green.

Rivier, having already locked up the top seed in the GNAC, will host Johnson & Wales University on Saturday, March 26th at 11:00 am for the first semi-final game of the GNAC Championship Tournament.  The winner will play against the winner of semi-final #2 (#2 Emmanuel vs #3 Lasell) in the championship game at 4:00 pm..