NEW PALTZ, N.Y. (February 21, 2020) – For the second time in the last six days, the fourth-ranked Stevens Institute of Technology men's volleyball team defeated the No. 2 team in NCAA Division III as the Ducks topped SUNY-New Paltz Friday at Hawk Center.

Senior David Lehman led the way for Stevens with 19 kills while junior Jack Bittker produced a double-double with 11 kills and a team-high 10 digs as the Ducks earned a 3-1 victory for their fifth straight win. Stevens has now defeated seven opponents who were at least receiving votes in the AVCA poll and are 4-0 against teams ranked inside the top-15.

The Hawks got 20 kills from Aaron Carrk and 19 kills by Brendan Spulnick as they fell at home for just the third time in the last two seasons.

It is the first time Stevens has defeated New Paltz on the road since April 9, 2016 as the two teams have traded wins back-and-forth in the last six matches of the series.

The Ducks committed just 14 total attack errors and 12 service errors in the match while the Hawks finished with 24 attack errors and 26 errors at the service line.

Junior Ryan Byrne joined Bittker and Lehman in double figures in kills with 11 and Jonathan Frenzel added eight kills on just 10 swings while Stevens hit .322 as a team.

Additionally, senior Grant Burden registered 44 assists for his third straight match with at least 40 assists and added nine digs.

Volleys and Points

• The opening set was a true back-and-forth affair with neither team leading by more than two points the entirety of the set.
• Trailing 18-16, Stevens took advantage of four Hawks errors and got a kill from Bittker as a part of a 5-1 run to take a 21-19 edge.
• The Hawks bounced back with three straight points of their own to re-take the lead 22-21.
• After falling behind 23-22, the Ducks went on a 4-1 run, highlighted by kills by Lehman and Byrne, to win the set 26-24.
• Early in the second set, New Paltz used a 5-1 run to take an early 6-3 edge.
• The Hawks showed their offensive prowess throughout the set and maintained the lead until late in the set.
• It looked like New Paltz was going to tie the match at one, grabbing a 22-18 lead in the set.
• Stevens responded, however, scoring six of the next seven points to force a set point at 24-23.
• New Paltz fought off the set point and forced one of its own at 25-24.
• The set didn't end there, though, as Stevens fended off five total set points and the Hawks fought off three.
• Tied at 29, New Paltz committed a service error and Byrne delivered his lone block of the contest to seal a thrilling 31-29 set win and put the Ducks ahead 2-0.
• In the third set, Stevens used a 5-1 run to grab an 8-5 lead early in the stanza.
• Behind 12-11, New Paltz went on a 7-3 run to take an 18-15 edge.
• The Ducks answered with a quick 4-1 flurry of their own thanks to a pair of kills by Lehman to tie the set at 22.
• Stevens was able to hold off three straight set points before the Hawks finally registered back-to-back points to win the set 28-26.
• Trailing 6-4 early in the fourth and final set, the Ducks went on a 9-2 run featuring kills by Bittker and Frenzel as well as service aces by Bittker and Lehman.
• Stevens was able to keep New Paltz at arms-length the rest of the way as they won the set 25-20 and the match 3-1.

Inside the Numbers

• New Paltz out-hit Stevens .329-.322 in the match, but the Ducks hit .360 in the fourth set while the Hawks hit .280.
• Stevens held a 9-6 advantage in blocks in the match, led by four from Frenzel and three by Lehman.
• The Ducks posted five service aces while the Hawks finished with three.
• Michael Snajder joined Burden with nine digs in the win while Lehman added seven.
• In the five-match win streak, Stevens has dropped just three total sets.
• Bittker, Frenzel and Byrne combined for just seven errors on 70 total attempts between the three.
• The Ducks committed just two errors in the decisive fourth set and had just four apiece in the other three.
• Stevens set a new season high with five solo blocks in the win as a team.

From the Sidelines (Head Coach Patrick Dorywalski)

• "The three pin hitters were at it again tonight, but Jonathan Frenzel had a great night also. Jack Bittker also had a double-double. Also, our three serve receivers were awesome. Just look at those numbers, no receiving errors through a match like that is impressive. It was just a hard fought battle all night and was an awesome match."

Next Up

• The Ducks have another top-15 matchup Sunday when they take on No. 13 Endicott College at 12:00 p.m. in Beverly, Mass.
• Stevens has won all 13 meetings between the two schools in men's volleyball, including a 3-1 victory on Jan. 26, 2019.
• Live stats and video will be available on StevensDucks.com.

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