Men’s Volleyball Splits Tri-Match with SUNY Potsdam and No. 7 Springfield

NASHUA, N.H. – The Rivier men's volleyball team swept SUNY Potsdam before falling to nationally-ranked No. 7 Springfield in a Saturday afternoon tri-match at the Muldoon Center.

The Raiders downed the Bears by set scores of 25-13, 25-19, 25-17 in the morning match and fell 11-25, 13-25, 25-21, 17-25 in the final match of the day to the Pride.

 Rivier will open up its Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) slate on Tuesday, Feb. 4 in a 7:00 p.m. showdown at Dean.

Rivier 3, SUNY Potsdam 0

Rivier hit .565 in the first set to cruise to a 1-0 lead in the match behind junior Matthew McCloskey's five kills on seven errorless attempts. First-year Cade Barron dropped in half of the Raiders' four service aces in the opening frame.

First-year outside Cody Fitzpatrick flashed with four kills at a .667 clip in the second as Rivier raced out to a 2-0 lead.

Barron notched two additional aces in the fifth as Rivier closed the match out for their first win on home court this season.

The Raiders hit .482 on the match, marking the highest hitting percentage of the season thus far. Senior middle Bassam Awde led the attack with seven kills at a whopping .750 clip. Sophomore setter Justin Barish recorded 32 assists in the victory.

No. 7 Springfield 3, Rivier 1

Rivier quickly fell behind two sets to none as the nationally-ranked Pride used a high-pressure offensive approach to get in front in a hurry.

In a third set with 11 tie scores and seven lead changes, Rivier prevailed by limiting Springfield to a .100 hitting percentage and hitting at a match-high .280 clip. Sophomore outside Racine Camara had four kills at a .429 clip to boost the home team to the fourth set.

The fourth set saw the Pride pull away late as Riv trailed 21-17 before allowing the Pride to snag the last four points and secure its fifth win of the campaign.

Awde hit .333 with four kills on the outing.