Men's Volleyball sweeps final day of LFOD '16

(Nashua, N.H.) Day Two of the 2016 Men's Volleyball 'Live Free or Die Invitational' featured the Rivier University Raiders hosting both The Sage Colleges and Endicott College inside the friendly confines of the Muldoon Gymnasium. The Raiders need just 47 minutes in their first game as they dispatched Sage College in straight sets before sweeping Endicott to close out the Invitational.

Game One: Rivier University 3, The Sage Colleges 0 (Final)

Rivier took the first game of the day over The Sage Colleges with scores of 25-11, 25-12 and 25-14. 12 different Raiders appeared in the match as senior Mike Hadder (Yucaipa, Calif.) laced down seven kills to lead the squad. Junior Matt LaSance (Madison, Conn.) recorded an. 833 hitting percentage (five kills) to go along with his 23 assists and classmate Ian Wolski (Westfield, Mass.) added six kills in the win. Freshman Nathan Kunkel (Plum Borough, Pa.) contributed on the defensive side with five digs and fellow rookie Khaynen Yocca (Pittsburgh, Pa.) had four total blocks for Rivier.

The Gators were paced by sophomores Ryan Guyton (Lockport, N.Y.) and Bailey Cecchi (Agawam, Mass.) who knocked down six kills each. Sophomore Casey Fitzpatick (Haverhill, Mass.) dished out 15 assists and Cecchi totaled seven digs.

Game Two: Rivier University 3, Endicott College 0 (Final)

The Raiders were able to complete the Invitational sweep as they earned their third win in as many games with a three set win over Endicott College by scores of 25-22, 25-20 and 25-22.

Sophomore Grant Andler (Chicago, Ill.) was one of the Raiders to reach double digit kills as he led the team with 14. Hadder and sophomore Matt Heckler (Simi Valley, Calif.) were the other two Raiders as they finished with 11 and 10, respectively, while both totaled three total blocks each in the contest. Junior Tyler Blank (Rochester, N.Y.) recorded 43 assists in directing the offensive effort while also providing defensive help with eight digs. Senior Nick Ochoa (Whittier, Calif.) was the dig leader with 10. Sophomore Garrett Bucklin (Jamestown, R.I.) had a solid afternoon with eight kills and five digs for Rivier.

Endicott (5-6 overall) saw senior Alex Wasik (Milford, Mass.) register the game high of 17 kills and a .448 hitting percentage with junior Daniel Toth (Glenwood, N.J.) chipping in at seven kills and two total blocks in the losing effort for the Gulls. Senior Cameron Little (San Diego, Calif.) dished out 34 assists on the afternoon while helping the back line in recording four digs. Tying Little for the dig lead were sophomore Troy Riorden (Fairport, N.Y.) and senior John Osborne (Freehold, N.J.). Riorden finished with six kills for Endicott.

The Raiders will be back in action on Tuesday evening when they travel to #1 Springfield College for a 7pm contest.