HOBOKEN, N.J. (April 11, 2019) – No. 4 Stevens Institute of Technology men's volleyball team will play the winner of Massachusetts Institute of Technology versus New York University match in the semifinal round of the United Volleyball Conference Championship Tournament on Saturday, April 13 at 2:30 P.M. in the George R. Newman Center at Caldwell University.
The Ducks earned the right to host the conference tournament with their exciting five-set victory over then-ranked No. 7 New Paltz as they were crowned regular season champions. Stevens posted an 8-1 record in conference play to be named the top seed heading into the tournament.
History
Stevens has reached the postseason every year since 2011 when the UVC started. The Ducks are two-time UVC Champions, winning the title in 2018 and 2015. Stevens has reached the final match of the tournament three other times but fell to Nazareth in 2012 and 2013 before New Paltz topped the Ducks in 2016.
Award Season
Junior
David Lehman was named the United Volleyball Conference Player of the Year to highlight the selections for Stevens. The Oakland, California native was also tabbed First Team All-Conference. Senior
Jacob Patterson alongside sophomore
Ryan Byrne and
Jack Bittker earned Second Team-All UVC honors, while junior
Jonathan Frenzel was named Honorable Mention.
MIT's Thomas Nelson was named the Libero/Defensive Specialist of the Year for the second-straight season. Josh Bigford of St. John Fisher took home Rookie of the Year status and head coach Steve England collected Coach of the Year honors.
New Paltz tied the Ducks with five all-conference honorees. Matthew Grace and Nick Smith both earned First Team honors while Aaron Carrk, Nick O'Malley and Bradley Schneider were tabbed Second Team All-Conference.
Scouting NYU
NYU ended conference play with a 6-3 record. The Violets handed Stevens their only conference loss of the season with their 3-1 win at the Brooklyn Athletic Facility on February 27.
First Team All-UVC honorees Neil Ferraro and Evan Lindley lead the Violets as they head into the conference tournament. Ferraro boasts a team-best .436 hitting percentage, while leading the Violets with 1.12 blocks per set. Lindley leads NYU with 57 aces to average 0,62 per set, leading the conference in this category. The junior opposite adds 2.53 kills per set, 1.25 digs per set and 0.52 aces per set.
Alex Li earned Honorable Mention as he currently leads the Violets with 4.37 points per set and 3.76 kills per set.
Scouting MIT
The Engineers concluded UVC play with a 5-4 record. MIT fell to the Ducks on February 9 in Hoboken, 3-1.
Nelson leads the Engineers with 199 digs to average 2.55 per set, ranking 35th in Division III. The libero has also totaled 138 kills, 37 assists and 24 aces. Skyler Kaufman earned Second Team All-Conference as he leads the UVC with his .442 hitting percentage. Kaufman also ranks second in the conference with 0.99 blocks per set.
Facebook: "Like" Stevens Athletics
Twitter: @stevensducks
Instagram: @stevensducks
Snapchat: ducks_athletics
#AllRise
