FREDERICK, Md. (March 17, 2023) – Sophomore Kevin Herbst set new career highs with 13 assists and had nine aces as No. 1 Stevens Institute of Technology men's volleyball swept Hood College (25-6, 25-9, 25-4) Friday evening in a Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) contest played at Governor Thomas Johnson High School.

Senior Nathan Lancia totaled six kills and had two service aces while junior Carver Weirick had five kills and four digs for the Ducks, who won their 12th straight match to improve to 23-2 on the year and to 4-0 in MAC play.

Hood was led by Marc Fitzkee, who had five kills and one ace. The Blazers are now 2-14 on the season, including losing five straight. This was the first ever matchup between the two teams.

The Ducks hit a season-high .611 in recording their 15th sweep of the year. The Ducks totaled 28 kills on 36 attacks with just six errors. Stevens committed just one error in the first set and hit an impressive .750 (10-1-12). The Ducks held Hood to just six total kills, as the Blazers committed eight errors on the night and had a hitting percentage of -.257.

Herbst recorded two aces within the first three points as the Ducks opened up a 3-0 lead. After giving up one point, Lancia kicked it into gear as he had two kills and an ace across a four-point run to put the Ducks up 7-1. Now up 8-3, Weirick and sophomore Brandon Rogers combined for four of the next five points to open up a 13-3 lead. After the two teams traded the next four points, Stevens closed the set on a 10-1 run to take the first frame. Senior Christopher Varseveld recorded a kill and an ace on the run, while Herbst closed the set with three straight aces.

Lancia started things off for the Ducks in the second, scoring their first two points on kills. Stevens scored seven of the first eight, highlighted by errors from Hood and two kills by Rogers. He totalled four kills in the set. Later in the set, Weirick recorded three straight kills as the Ducks opened up a 15-6 lead. Stevens would go on to win the set 25-9, as Herbst tallied two more aces as part of a 10-3 closing run.

Looking to close the match, Stevens blew open a 7-0 lead to start the third. Sophomore Sebastian Huyke had two aces on the run. After going back-and-forth over the next few points, Stevens maintained a 15-4 lead getting ready to hit the home stretch. They would end up scoring the final 10 points of the match to close out Hood and earn their 23th win on the year. Sophomore Jesse Knuckles had four aces and a kill on the run while Huyke had three kills.

Inside the Numbers

• Stevens finished with 25 service aces, which is tied for the eight-most in any three-set match in Division III this season. Herbst led the team with nine. Knuckles added five while Huyke added three. The 25 aces are the most for the program since the Ducks served up 44 in a sweep of Rust on Feb. 20, 2016. 
• Huyke led the team with 14 assists, while Herbst's 13 heped the team total 27.
• Lancia and Rogers each had a team-high six kills. Weirick also added five for Stevens. Rogers' six kills matched a career high.
• Weirick led the team with four digs. 
• Eight different Ducks had at least one kill.
• Impressively, the Ducks had just six service errors.

• No. 1 Men's Volleyball continues MAC play tomorrow on March 18 as they take on Stevenson and King's College (Pa.) in a tri-match hosted by Stevenson.
• The Ducks take on Stevenson in the opener, set for 1 p.m. The Ducks won 3-1 in last year's contest.
• Stevens will also take on King's College (Pa.) in the second match of the event at 3 p.m. Stevens is 3-0 all-time against the Monarchs.
• Links for live stats and video for both matches are available on StevensDucks.com.