Box Score 1 | Box Score 2

HOBOKEN, N.J. (February 1, 2014) – The nationally ranked No. 11 Stevens Institute of Technology men's volleyball team picked up a win in its first match Saturday in Canavan Arena against Eastern Mennonite University in four sets but lost to Division I Sacred Heart University in the final match of the day.

Stevens 3, Eastern Mennonite 1

Stevens earned its first victory of the season in its home opener, 25-19, 20-25, 25-15, 25-18. The Ducks hit an even .300 in the match (45 kills, 10 errors, 100 attempts), compared to .198 from Eastern Mennonite (44K, 23E, 106A). At the net, Stevens earned 9.5 total blocks.

The Ducks were tested throughout the first set, as the opener stayed between a five-point difference for a majority of the game - with the exception of 16-10 and 18-12. Stevens went back up by six on a combined block from sophomores Thomas Wright (La Mesa, Calif.) and Alexander Carpenter (Delaware, Ohio) to take a 24-18 lead and would go on to win the set, 25-19, on a service error by the Royals.

Eastern Mennonite answered back with a 25-20 set two win to knot the match at 1-1. The Royals lead early up to a 6-6 tie. Stevens then went ahead, 7-6, and remained in control until another deadlock at 11-11. EMU snatched the lead back on the ensuing point and never trailed from there on out.

In the third set, EMU got on the board first, but the Ducks would tally the next point and went on to cruise to a 25-15 win. Junior Kevin Aeckerle (Henrietta, N.Y.) dished out 15 assists in the set and Stevens hit .565 as a team.

Stevens led from the start in set four to lock up the win. The Royals got to within two, 12-10, but the Ducks ran off six consecutive points to put the set out of reach.

Carpenter hit an impressive .692 overall with 10 kills on 13 attempts and four blocks. Wright put down eight kills and added five blocks with five digs. Aeckerle handed out 34 assists in the match to go along with six digs.

Sophomore Chris Vaughan (Medford, N.J.) also tallied 10 kills in the win and hit at a .556 clip with six digs. Freshman Gabe Shankweiler (Allentown, Pa.) was the third Duck to reach double-digit kills with 10 as well.

Junior Daniel Smith (Tucson, Ariz.) posted a .667 hitting percentage in the match with seven kills on nine swings with three blocks and a pair of service aces. Classmate Dylan Schlosser (Emmaus, Pa.) paced the Ducks defensively with 11 digs.

Sacred Heart 3, Stevens 0

Sacred Heart capped off a perfect tri-match with a sweep of Stevens, 25-13, 25-21, 25-18.

The Ducks jumped out to a 5-2 lead in the first set on a pair of from Vaughan. Sacred Heart responded with a 6-0 run to take an 8-5 advantage until Vaughan put down another kill to end the streak. After a Stevens side out made the score, 8-6, the Pioneers seized momentum in the set and ran away with a 25-13 victory to start the match. Stevens struggled offensively, hitting -.045, while Sacred Heart hit at a .368 clip.

In set two, Stevens held onto the lead from the opening point to a 10-10 tie. Sacred Heart jumped ahead for the first time in the set on the next serve and maintained control of the lead the rest of the way for a 25-21 win. The Ducks got to within one point late in the set, 21-20, but the Pioneers ran off four of the next five points.

Once again in set three, the Ducks led early, and by as many as four, but Sacred Heart fought back to deadlock the game at 7-7. The teams traded points up to another stalemate at 10-10, and then the Pioneers broke the set open and claimed the clinching set, 25-18.

Vaughan led Stevens in the match with eight kills, while Shankweiler added seven more.

Aeckerle distributed 14 more assists to his total on the day, while Schlosser recorded eight digs.

The Ducks never hit for a positive percentage in the match and finished the contest at -.041. Sacred Heart did not perform much better in the same category, .108, but scored with seven service aces posted 14.5 blocks (eight solo)

Stevens is back at home on February 4 against NJIT at 7 p.m.

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