HOBOKEN, N.J. (April 20, 2019)  – Juniors Grant Burden and David Lehman each recorded double-doubles as the No. 3 Stevens Institute of Technology men's volleyball team defeated Wells College in five sets (23-25, 25-21, 16-25, 25-20, 15-12) Saturday evening in the NCAA Division III Men's Volleyball Quarterfinal match at Canavan Arena. 

Burden recorded career-bests in both assists and digs with 57 and 11, respectively. Lehman delivered a match-high 19 kills while adding 10 digs. The Ducks improved their overall record to 28-5 as they advance to the Final Four. 

Wells was paced by Caden O'Loughlin's double-double of 15 kills and 12 digs. The junior added match-highs of six blocks and three aces to end the night. The Express concludes their 2019 campaign with a record of 28-9.

Stevens registered a .305 hitting percentage (68-21-154) as they held the Express to a .236 percentage (61-22-165). The Ducks held the edge in kills, blocks, assists and digs while Wells out-served their opponent as they totaled eight aces to Stevens' four. 

The opening set began with a 3-1 lead for Stevens as Robert Patzer delivered a kill for the first point of the regional quarterfinal before senior Cooper Diamond set down two passes and sophomore Ryan Byrne issued his first kill of the day. Express briefly grabbed the lead with a kill by O'Loughlin and an ace by Josh Undari gave them a two-point advantage, but the Ducks immediately answered with three consecutive points to take back the lead. Wells worked their way to a 19-15 advantage when O'Loughlin, Patzer and Joe Zimmerman each recorded a kill. Following a service error by the Express, Diamond set down a pass from Burden and freshman Jack Fyda issued back-to-back aces to put Stevens up 22-20. Wells answered with a 5-1 run after a timeout to take a 1-0 lead entering the second set. 

The Express began set two with a 4-1 lead before Stevens took a one-point lead as Diamond recorded two blocks, one with Lehman and one with sophomore Jack Bittker, and Byrne added an ace and kill. Stevens held onto their lead for the majority of the set, creating as much as a six-point distance. After a kill by Bittker, Wells began to chip away at their deficit with a kill and ace from Zimmerman and a block with O'Loughlin. However, a service error by the Express gave the Ducks the second-set victory. 

Wells opened the third set outscoring the Ducks 12-3, including six consecutive points, to put Stevens on their heels. The Ducks then cut the lead in half as Byrne and junior Kyle Warnock recorded kills and Patzer committed an attack error. The Express continued to maintain control of the third set, only letting Stevens come within four points when senior Dylan DeBoer blocked an attempt by Undari. A Zimmerman kill, a kill and ace from O'Loughlin and back-to-back kills by Justin Williams gave the Express a nine-point advantage before they secured the win of set three on a service error by Stevens. 

The fourth set saw Wells jump on an 8-5 lead following an O'Loughlin ace and a kill by Undari. Stevens then scored five-consecutive points, capped off with a block by Burden, Byrne and Frenzel, to put the Ducks up 11-9. O'Loughlin put the Express back in the lead with a block solo and a block with Williams before he committed an error and Bittker set down a pass, giving Stevens the one-point edge. Byrne registered a kill and a block before Bittker issued another kill to bring the Ducks three points away from tying the match. After a service error by Stevens, Byrne and Lehman each collected a kill to send the match to the deciding set. 

Lehman and Frenzel blocked an attempt by Ryan Turner before an attack error by Byrne tied the final set at one. Frenzel then delivered back-to-back kills and Lehman set down a pass from Burden to give Stevens the lead. The teams traded the next few points, neither of them wanting their season to come to an end. Wells then jumped on a 10-9 lead thanks to kills by Patzer and Undari and an ace by Zimmerman. Frenzel answered with a kill, only to see Turner and O'Loughlin record a block. Wells took a 12-11 advantage on a kill by O'Loughlin before Lehman kept the set tied with a kill. Diamond then registered a momentum-changing block before Undari committed an error to put the Ducks one-point away from advancing. Bittker then sent a pass from Burden off the arms of Patzer and into the bleachers for the final point of the match. 

Stevens will take on the University of California, Santa Cruz on Friday, April 26 at 6:30 P.M. in the Semifinals of the NCAA Division III Men's Volleyball Tournament.

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