HOBOKEN, N.J. (April 12, 2008) – The tenth-ranked Stevens Institute of Technology men's volleyball team was defeated by No. 14 Hunter College (32-4) in the championship match of the 2008 Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference Division III South Region Men's Volleyball Championship on Saturday in Hoboken, N.J. This was the Ducks (21-12) seventh five-game loss of the season (six of which was decided by two points) as they fell 30-25, 28-30, 30-32, 30-27, 13-15.

Semifinal Round – Stevens def. Bard (30-25, 30-20, 30-20)

Junior outside hitter Joe Trinsey led Stevens (21-11) with 12 kills, four total blocks and a pair of aces. Trinsey produced a .556 hitting percentage (12 kills, two errors, 18 attempts). Junior outside hitter Tomas Bochicchio and sophomore outside hitter Andrew Fessler both posted seven kills in the win as Bochicchio added six digs. Freshman setter Aaron Ostrovsky dished out 25 assists,

For Bard (16-13), senior outside hitter Zachary Hamaker (Walnut Creek, Calif.) led the Raptors with 14 kills and eight digs. Freshman setter Brice Ormesher (Chicago, Ill.) registered 22 assists, while freshman opposite hitter Andrew Cortrite (Los Angeles, Calif.) finished with six digs.

Semifinal Round – Hunter def. Baruch (30-26, 30-26, 27-30, 30-25)

Sophomore outside hitter Wojciech Jakubiak (Poland) led the Hawks (31-4) having notched 18 kills, three service aces and 10 digs. Freshman outside hitter Pablo Oliveira (Uberlandia, Brazil) posted 13 kills, seven digs and a pair of blocks in the win. Sophomore setter Zacarias Ripoll (Puerto Plata, DR) connected on 41 assists and landed 14 digs.

For Baruch (23-14), junior opposite hitter Daniel Levent (Forest Hills, N.Y.) led with 21 kills, eight digs and eight total blocks. Sophomore outside hitter Jonathan Tuwaidan (Woodside, N.Y.) recorded nine kills and 11 digs in the defeat. Sophomore setter Radu Wyrwas (Bialystok, Poland) chipped in with 39 assists.

Championship Match – Hunter def. Stevens (25-30, 30-28, 32-30, 27-30, 15-13)

With the score knotted at 8-all after the switch of Game 5, Jakubiak recorded his 23 kill of the match to give the Hawks a one-point advantage and possession of the serve. Ripoll landed a kill to give Hunter a two-point lead, however the Ducks would not back down as junior middle hitter Wes Eberlin posted a kill to cut the deficit to one. The Hawks held a slight lead until the score read 13-13. Jakubiak's 24 kill of the game put the Hawks back on top. Sophomore outside hitter Jonathan Landis could not connect on an attack as the ball was put into the net having crowned Hunter the 2008 ECAC Champions.

After Stevens controlled Game 1 and went on to a 30-25 victory, it was as if the Hawks awoken as they answered every offensive attack the Ducks threw at them. In the second game it was a back-in-forth battle as the scored was tied 12 different times. Hunter pulled ahead after the Hawks called a timeout having led 20-19. They went on a 10-7 run to close out the game as Jakubiak and Oliveira both collected five kills.

With the match knotted at a game apiece, the third contest was a much needed win for either team. Points were exchanged once again till the Ducks took their first lead of the game as the scoreboard read 20-19. The Hawks responded on a 7-4 run to take the lead 26-25 as Stevens called a timeout. From then on it was back and forth till a Jakubiak kill and an attack error by junior middle blocker Doug Reger gave Hunter a 2-1 advantage heading into the fourth contest.

Game 4 was neck and neck until the Ducks pulled away from a 23-23 stalemate. A pair of kills from Landis and three attack errors charged to the Hawks allowed Stevens to take advantage of a four-point swing. The Ducks closed out the game as Bochicchio landed his 16th kill of the game.

Stevens was led by Bochicchio and Landis who both posted 18 kills and eight digs apiece. Trinsey notched 14 kills, eight digs and four total blocks. Junior libero Michael Bertucci had an outstanding day defensively for the Ducks as he recorded a season-high 22 digs. Ostrovsky finished the match with 43 assists, while Reger finished with four blocks in the loss.

For Hunter, Jakubiak totaled 25 kills, 18 digs and three aces as he was voted the 2008 ECAC Most Outstanding Player of the championship. Oliveira was second in kills (18) and added seven digs. Ripoll registered 50 assists and nine digs in the victory.