Men’s Volleyball Opens Season At SUNYIT

MARCY, N.Y. – The Wells College men's volleyball team picked up two losses to open their season on the campus of the SUNY Institute of Technology Friday evening. Wells (0-2) posted a 3-0 loss to the Wentworth Institute of Technology (1-1) before falling to the Hawks of Hilbert College (1-2) by a 3-1 margin in the second match.

In the first match of the day, Wells dropped a 3-0 decision to the Leopards via set scores of 25-17, 25-12 and 25-20. Sophomore John Farruggia (Leonardsville, N.Y.) led all Wells players with 11 kills on the match, racking up a team-best 27 attacks in the loss. Sophomore Derek Nipps (Turnersville, N.J.) assisted 19 of his team's 25 total kills while senior C.J. Bayly (Waymart, Pa.) recorded seven digs defensively.

Playing in their first collegiate match, freshmen Liam Kaylor (Falls Church, Va.) and Alex Battey (Palmdale, Calif.) posted four kills apiece, ranking second on the team in that category. Farruggia and Battey each posted two service aces while five different players recorded blocks for Wells.

A total of 16 players appeared in the match for Wentworth en route to the victory. Rami Akouri posted seven kills in 20 total attacks, leading the team in both categories. Jake Reed hammered home four service aces alongside five kills in 11 errorless chances. Defensively, Mike Rogachefsky chipped in with five digs to tally his team's high in digs.

Freshman Mathew Armlin (Fort Plain, N.Y.) had a breakout game for the Wells against Hilbert, but the Express posted a four-set loss (24-26, 23-25, 25-19, 18-25). Wells was edged by the Hawks in the first and second sets by only two points before securing their first set win of the year against Hilbert in the third set. However, Hilbert was able to turn aside the Express in the decisive fourth set.

Wells saw 10 kills from Armlin, participating in only his second collegiate match. Armlin committed only three errors for Wells and added a team-high four total blocks. Battey registered nine kills while Farruggia and sophomore J.J. Podczasy (Macungie, Pa.) each posted eight kills. Nipps assisted 29-of-41 kills for Wells while contributing 16 digs defensively for the Express.

Adam Weaver was dominant for the Hawks, posting 21 total kills in 38 total attacks for a .368 hitting percentage. Adam Heftka assisted 32-of-36 kills for Hilbert while Ryan Ratajczak and David Mellerski posted 18 and 10 digs, respectively.

Wells returns to action Saturday, Jan. 25 as they face-off against Bard College and Cazenovia College on the campus of SUNYIT beginning at 10:00 a.m.