NEWARK, N.J. (January 29, 2011) – The Stevens Institute of Technology men's volleyball team went 2-0 during the first day of the Golden Dome Classic hosted by Rutgers-Newark, defeating Baruch College, 3-2 (19-25, 21-25, 25-22, 25-18, 15-13), before upending Rivier College, 3-1 (25-19, 21-25, 25-17, 29-27). With the wins the Ducks moved to 5-0 overall on the young season. Stevens resumes tournament play on Sunday, January 30 against D'Youville College and the host Scarlet Raiders.
Stevens 3, Baruch 2 (19-25, 21-25, 25-22, 25-18, 15-13)
Down 2-0, Stevens battled back in the third-set, hitting a match-best .542 en route to a 25-22 victory. Stevens continued to swing away in the fourth, notching a .357 hitting percentage, while holding the Bearcats to a .056 attack percentage in a 25-18 triumph. The Ducks would complete their third come-from-behind victory of the season with a 15-13 win in the fifth-set tiebreak.
Evans paved the way for the Ducks, hitting at a .424 clip with 17 kills. Seniors SteFan PremDas and Jonathan Landis each added 14 kills, with the duo also combining for 17 digs and eight blocks. Senior Timothy Karl and sophomore Jake Modestow finished with nine kills apiece, while senior setter Brandt Grobeis dished out a match-high 56 assists.
Senior outside hitter Pablo Oliveira (Uberlandia, Brazil) hammered home a match-best 21 kills to pace the Bearcats' attack, while fellow senior Eryk Kowalski (Zabno, Poland) added 18 kills and three blocks. Senior Kirill Yagnetinskiy (Brooklyn, N.J.) had a team-high 10 digs in the loss, while sophomore setter Jesus Echevarria (San Juan, Puerto Rico) tallied 47 assists in the loss.
Stevens 3, Rivier 1 (25-19, 21-25, 25-17, 29-27)
After a 25-19 first set win, the Raiders knotted things up at a frame apiece with a 25-21 second set victory. The Ducks responded by hitting a match-best .303 in a 25-17 third set victory before wrapping up the match with a hard-fought 29-27 triumph in the fourth and final stanza.
PremDas finished with 14 kills, eight digs, and four blocks in the win, while Landis added 12 kills and 10 digs, notching his second double-double of the day. Karl finished with six kills and six blocks, while Modestow added five kills and seven blocks. Grobeis tallied 45 assists in the win.
Senior outside hitter Jared Andreozzi (Barrington, R.I.) notched a match-high 19 kills in the loss, while junior Alex Xenidis (Shelton, Conn.) had eight kills and six blocks. Freshman Cameron Walker (Costa Mesa, Calif.) chipped in with 41 assists and nine digs.
