PremDas Keys Stevens' Wins Over Hunter And Mount Olive
HOBOKEN, N.J. (January 22, 2011) – Senior SteFan PremDas tallied 37 kills and 15 digs in a pair of matches, as the Stevens Institute of Technology men’s volleyball team notched a couple of hard-fought, come-from-behind victories over Hunter College and Mount Olive College at the Stevens Invitational held in Canavan Arena in Hoboken, N.J. The Ducks opened the day with a 3-2 (16-25, 19-25, 25-23, 25-19, 16-14) triumph over the Hawks before taking down the Trojans, 3-2 (17-15, 25-18, 19-25, 25-23, 15-10). With the wins, the Ducks moved to 2-0 on the young season.
Fellow senior Jonathan Landis chipped in with 21 kills and 11 digs on the afternoon, while sophomore Jake Modestow had 17 kills, 11 blocks, and five digs. Freshman Ryan Seifert was stellar in his first appearance in Cardinal and Gray, tallying 14 kills in a pair of matches, while senior co-captain Brandt Grobeis finished with 99 assists, averaging 9.9 helpers per set.
Mount Olive defeated Newbury College, 3-0 (25-17, 25-7, 25-15) in its first match of the day, while the Nighthawks rebounded in their second match-up of the evening, outlasting Hunter 3-2 (21-25, 17-25, 25-22, 26-24, 16-14).
Stevens 3, Hunter 2 (16-25, 19-25, 25-23, 25-19, 16-14)
Hitting just .115 and .167 in the match’s first two sets, the Ducks found themselves down 0-2 entering the third. Stevens grinded out a 25-23 third set win before scoring a 25-19 victory in the fourth – hitting .286 while holding Hunter to a .118 clip. The Ducks wrapped up the comeback with a 16-14 triumph in the fifth-set tiebreak, notching a match-best .316 hitting percentage, while holding the Hawks to a paltry .059 attack percentage on 17 swings.
Three Ducks finished the match with double-digit kills led by PremDas with 22. Landis added 10 kills and five digs, while Modestow hit .438 with 10 kills, seven blocks, and four digs. Grobeis dished out a match-high 55 assists while directing the Stevens offense, with senior co-captain Bryant DeFranco and sophomore James Mataras combining for 12 kills, six digs, and six blocks.
Junior Eric Barty (Jamaica, N.Y.) paced the Hawks’ attack with 15 kills, seven digs, and four blocks, while sophomore Braien Otsla (Brooklyn, N.Y.) finished with 11 kills, four digs, and four blocks. Senior Marcin Polak (Brooklyn, N.Y.) and Jonathan Park (East Elmhurst, N.Y.) each added seven kills, with Stanley Martinez (Brooklyn, N.Y.) collecting 39 assists in the loss.
Stevens 3, Mount Olive 2 (17-15, 25-18, 19-25, 25-23, 15-10)
After dropping the first set 25-17, the Ducks tallied a .500 hitting percentage in the second en route to a 25-18 set victory. The Trojans responded with a 25-19 third set triumph before Stevens knotted things up, swinging .343 in a closely-contested 25-23 fourth frame. The Ducks wrapped it up with a 15-10 fifth-set tiebreak, notching a .308 hitting percentage.
PremDas and Landis finished with 15 and 11 kills, respectively, with the duo combining for 10 digs and five blocks. Seifert added 12 kills, four digs, and four blocks, while Modestow finished with seven kills and four blocks. Grobeis handed out 44 assists in the win.
Freshman Angel Dache (La Habana, Cuba) hammered home a match-best 24 kills in the loss, while also tallying 12 digs. Alejandro Rivera added 11 kills, while John Nunns (Fayetteville, N.C.) had eight kills and two blocks. Jackson Mettechecchi chipped in with 50 assists.