Hoboken, N.J. – The No. 2 Stevens Institute of Technology men's volleyball team rebounded from a first-set setback to upend No. 6 New York University, 3-1, in a non-conference battle on Tuesday.
 
The Ducks (10-1) topped the Violets (7-2) by scores of 23-25, 25-20, 26-24, and 28-26.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Violets doubled up the Ducks early in the first set, taking a 6-3 advantage. NYU continued to see the lead hover around three before a Joshua Levandoske kill and an unforced hitting error trimmed the deficit to two at 14-12. The guests forced Stevens into a timeout after two consecutive points, but the Ducks answered with a pair of their own, including a kill from Alex Olcott.
 
The Olcott kill sparked a 4-2 run by Stevens, as a Tyler Hoke kill leveled the set at 18. The Ducks took their first lead of the opener when Julius Stiemer and Hoke teamed up for a double block to make it 20-19. After ties at 20, 21, 22, and 23, NYU registered a kill to bring up set point and closed the frame with a solo block for the 25-23 win.
 
Stevens again fell behind early in the second stanza, as NYU claimed seven of the first 11 points and built its largest lead of the day at 10-5. Stiemer halted the run with a kill off a Nick Schmidt set, and an attack error made it 10-7, but the Violets quickly pushed the margin back to five.
 
The deficit hovered there until a double block from Phillip Bone and Greg Li cut it to three at 16-13. Stevens then flipped the script with an 8-0 run to take its first lead of the set. Ryan Schmid and Hoke combined for two blocks during the spurt, while Schmid added three kills. A Levandoske kill brought up set point, and an NYU attack error evened the match at one set apiece.
 
The third set featured back-and-forth play early, with neither side leading by more than two through the first 18 points. Stevens trailed 9-7 before Schmid delivered back-to-back kills to tie the score. NYU responded with a 6-0 run to go ahead 15-9, but the Ducks answered with points from Bone and a Schmid–Hoke block.
 
A Hoke ace forced an NYU timeout and pulled Stevens within two at 16-14. From there, neither team led by more than three the rest of the way. Stevens moved in front 23-22 after three straight points, highlighted by a Schmid solo block and an off-system kill. Li put down a kill off a Schmidt set to bring up set point, but the Violets tied it at 24. Schmid responded with another kill, and an NYU attack error sealed the 26-24 Stevens win.
 
Stevens trailed 6-2 early in the fourth, but three Schmid kills and a Li–Schmid block knotted the set at seven. The Ducks then claimed six of the next seven points, capped by a thunderous solo rejection from Schmidt. NYU answered with a 7-1 spurt to regain the lead at 15-14.
 
The set turned into a thriller, with ties at 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, and 26. Hoke put down a Schmidt set to bring up match point, and Stevens went right back to Schmid, who delivered the match-clinching kill to seal the victory.
 
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Despite only playing the final three frames, Schmid set a career high with 22 kills, hitting .514 (22-3-37). His 22 kills were the most by a Duck since Koby Sherman recorded 25 against Stevenson on April 10, 2025.
• Hoke finished with six blocks (one solo, five assists), nine digs, and seven kills. Schmidt posted a monster performance from the setter position with 44 assists and 19 digs, while libero Dominic Ambrose added 11 digs.
• Li contributed seven kills and three blocks, as Schmid matched Hoke with six blocks. 

UP NEXT
The Ducks return to action next Tuesday, traveling to Newark to face Rutgers-Newark at 7:00 pm.