HOBOKEN, N.J. (April 22, 2023) – For the second straight year, No. 2 Stevens Institute of Technology men's volleyball has advanced to the national semifinal. For the second straight year, they needed to rally to do so.

Sophomore Koby Sherman had a match-high 20 kills and senior Percy Bickford had 17 as the Ducks defeated No. 11 Wentworth Institute of Technology 3-1 (28-30, 25-19, 25-22) Saturday in an NCAA quarterfinal matchup at Canavan Arena. 

Senior Connor Feulner added 12 kills and a block and first-year Tyler Hoke had eight and four for the Ducks, who won their fifth straight to improve to 33-3. The 33 wins match a program record, shared by the 2004 and 2007 squads. The victory also extended the Ducks' winning streak inside Canavan Arena to 37.

Jacob LaBouliere had 19 kills and Hunter Oshman added 14 to lead Wentworth, who saw its four-match winning streak come to an end in falling to 27-8. The Ducks have won all four meetings between the programs.

With the victory, Stevens moves on to next weekend's Final Four, where the Ducks will face No. 4 Messiah. The Ducks have won the last four meetings between the programs, including both matchups this season. Stevens will be making its seventh all-time appearance in the national semifinal. Stevenson University will serve as site host for the final two rounds of the NCAA Championship, with the match time for the contest between the Ducks and the Falcons scheduled to get underway at 7:30 p.m.

After spotting the Leopards the opening set, just as they did against St. Joseph's (L.I.) College one year ago, the Ducks rallied to win the second. Trailing 16-11, and essentially with their season in the balance, a service error returned the ball to the Ducks. Senior Nathan Lancia fired an ace and back-to-back kills from Bickford and Feulner drew the Ducks back to within one. Hunter Oshman knocked down a Josh Milkie pass to briefly slow down the Duck offense, but senior setter Louden Moran hit a surprise dump into the middle of the Wentworth defense to get a side out. After falling behind in the middle portion of the set, the Ducks then went on a 14-3 run to even the match; six coming with senior setter Moran at the serve. The sequence also included a pair of double blocks and two Bickford kills.

After getting back into the match, the Ducks showed why they were ranked at, or near, the top of the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Poll throughout the season, putting forth one of the top statistical sets in the program's postseason history. The Ducks .692 in the third set, setting down 18 kills on 26 swings without a single error. Sherman set down seven kills on nine swings in the pivotal set and first-year Phillip Bone had three kills and five digs. A decisive 6-1 run midway in the frame proved to be too much for the Leopards to overcome. 

Looking to close out the match, Bickford set down a Moran feed for the first points of the fourth set. Moran followed with consecutive aces as the Ducks built an early 3-0 lead. Three players combined for four points as the Ducks opened a 10-4 lead in a set they'd maintain a wire-to-wire advantage. Wentworth pulled to within two on a pair of double blocks but that would be as close as they'd come. Kills from Sherman and Feulner brought the Ducks to match point and after Wentworth fought off a pair of clinching points, Feulner set down a pass from Moran to close out the come-from-behind victory. Moran finished with a career-best 57 assists and helped the Ducks hit .398 – the 11th time Stevens has hit .350 or higher.

Stevens found itself in a hole after Wentworth won the opening set in dramatic fashion. Bickford knocked down a Moran pass for the first point of the match, but the Leopards reeled off six unanswered points to jump in front. The Ducks finally drew even at 14 only for an error and a LaBouliere kill to put Wentworth back in front. A 4-1 run appeared to put Stevens in front for good, but a double block by LaBoulie and Nicolai Bell knotted the teams again. In a set that featured 11 ties and five lead changes, the teams combined to fight off five set points before an Oshman ace finally closed out the opening set. 
 
Inside the Numbers

• Stevens held Wentworth to a .261 hitting percentage, with an .077 mark int the third set being a key number. 
• Sherman finished with a career-high 12 digs to produce his first career double-double. As a team, Stevens had 49, the third-most by the Ducks this season. 
• Bell finished with a match-high eight blocks, although he also had three blocking errors – as a team, Wentworth had five blocking miscues.
• Moran finished with a team-high three aces. 
• Oshman had seven kills in the opening set and then just seven over the remaining three. 
• Lancia finished with five kills, three digs, while matching a career-high with three assists.

Up Next

• No. 2 Men's Volleyball will meet No. 4 Messiah University Friday evening in the national semifinal.
• The Ducks defeated the Falcons in five sets in the Middle Atlantic Conference Championship match inside Canavan Arena on Apr. 15.
• Links for live stats and video will be posted StevensDucks.com once they are made available. 

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