UNION, N.J. – The No. 6 Stevens Institute of Technology men's volleyball team swept a tri-match on Saturday, picking up a pair of four-set victories over No. 19 Lasell and Kean.

Stevens (7-0) knocked off the Lasers 21-25, 25-16, 25-13, 25-18 in their first match of the day and finished with a 25-15, 25-18, 30-32, 25-23 victory over the Cougars.

HOW IT HAPPENED – LASELL
The Ducks fell behind 5-0 in the first set and trailed by at least three points the rest of the frame, despite six service errors from the Lasers.

Flipping the script from the first set, Stevens went up 7-2 in the second set and held at least a three-point cushion the rest of the way, hitting .375 (.281 in the first set) while holding Lasell to a .167 clip (.438 in the first set).

With momentum now on their side, Stevens rode that wave into and through the third set, grabbing an 8-3 lead, maintaining that definitive five-point margin the rest of the set, holding leads of 13-6, 17-8, 20-10, and 24-11 along the way.

The fourth set went back-and-forth early on, with a 5-3 Stevens lead turning into a 7-5 Lasers advantage. With Lasell still in front 11-7, Stevens reeled off nine of the following 11 and 12 of the following 15 points, opening the largest lead of the set for either side, 19-14. The Stevens run extended all the way to and through match point, with the Ducks closing out the win with four of the final five points.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE – LASELL

• The Ducks' defense held the Lasers to a .000 hitting percentage over the final two sets (14 kills, 14 errors)
• Stevens notched six total blocks over the final two sets after failing to record one between the first two
• Phillip Bone, Alex Olcott, and Julius Stiemer all had at least 13 kills and all his at least .250; Olcott and Stiemer each recorded double-doubles, with Bone falling one dig short of one himself
• Nick Schmidt recorded his second straight 40-assist, 10-dig double-double

HOW IT HAPPENED – KEAN
At 3-all in the first set, Stevens seized control with an 8-1 run for an 11-4 lead. The teams traded points back and forth throughout the rest of the set, with the Stevens lead never dwindling below five or growing past 11. Stevens hit a whopping.538 for the set (16 kills, two errors, 26 swings).

Stevens led wire-to-wire in the second set, thanks in large part to three separate bursts of three straight points, one at 7-6, one at 19-15, and one to close the set at 22-18. The Ducks took full advantage of shaky offense from the Cougars who committed eight attack errors to just three kills on 21 swings (a -.238 attack percentage).

The third set turned into a marathon as Stevens rallied from 7-3, 17-13, 22-18, 23-19, AND 24-22 deficits, then withstood an additional two set points before Kean finally pushed the match to a fourth, 32-30.

Stevens sought to put the match away late in the fourth, taking a 17-13 lead from a prior 11-10 advantage. Kean did not go quietly, reeling off seven of the next eight for a 20-18 advantage, seeking to push the match to five. Still trailing 21-20, Stevens definitively closed out the match, notching a service ace and kills from four different players for their final five points.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE – KEAN

• Cade Allen finished with a career-best 18 kills while hitting an astonishing .593 for the match
• Ryan Schmid followed right behind Allen with 16 kills, hitting .323
• Schmidt finished with another double-double, notching 19 assists and 10 digs
• Quinn Bozarth recorded a career-best 30 assists

UP NEXT
Stevens hosts #2 Carthage on Thursday at 4:00 PM at Canavan Arena. The Ducks have won seven of the last 11 meetings in the all-time series, including a five-set win in Kenosha, Wis. last season.

#AllRise