SAINTS TOP LASELL, 3-2, IN KEY GNAC BATTLE

NEWTON, Mass. – The Emmanuel Saints battled through their fourth 5-setter in the past five contests, taking a crucial 3-2 win over Lasell College on Tuesday night.  The Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) men's volleyball battle, resulted in EC improving to 8-10 on the season and an even 6-6 in GNAC action, as Emmanuel fights to secure a home match in the upcoming GNAC Tournament.  The loss drops the Lasers to 19-8 overall and 7-4 in conference play.

Senior Ashanti Jackson (Sacramento, Calif.), who registered a game-high 20 kills and seven digs, led the Saints with 21 points on the evening.  Junior Barrett Wingard (York, Pa.) had 12 kills in the match, while junior Julian Hess (Santa Monica, Calif.) hit .714 on the night with 10 kills in 14 swings and zero errors, to go along with his seven blocks.  Senior Sean Baxley (Saint James, N.Y.) dished out 49 assists in the win for EC.

Junior Jeff Vautrin (Chicopee, Mass.) paced the Lasers with a combined 14 kills and seven digs in five sets played. Junior Drew Caruso (Haverhill, Mass.) followed with nine kills on 15 attack attempts, earning a .467 hitting percentage on the night. Senior Dan Raffol (Natick, Mass.) also chipped in with eight kills and ten digs for the hosts.

Lasell set the pace in the first set earning a team-high .393 hitting percentage on 13 kills. After an attack error on the visitors to give the hosts the double-up advantage 10-5, Lasell held onto the lead for the remainder of the set. Three straight errors on the Saints forced the visitors to take a timeout, but were then shut down with final kills from Caruso and sophomore Patrick MacDonald (Floral Park, N.Y.) to take the set, 25-18.

The Saints were quick to respond in the second set, taking the lead in the opening plays. With junior Garrett McGarry (Chicago, Ill.) on the serve, Emmanuel went on a four-point run on the hosts, courtesy of a service ace and three Lasell errors. MacDonald and sophomore Tristan Davis (Rochester, N.Y.) jumped up for a block to cut the score to 9-5, but the Saints never looked back to claim an eventual 24-19 victory.

In the third set, both teams traded points until junior Andrew Glenn (Westport, Conn.) slammed one down to cushion the Lasers' lead 19-13. Vautrin took the final plays of the set, one kill and one service ace, to claim the set 25-19 heading into the fourth set.

The Saints were relentless in set four, establishing an early 10-8 lead after a Wingard kill. McGarry held serve for 10-straight points, where a kill from junior Ryan Jackson (Canton, Ohio) stopped the Saints' at 23-11. Baxley was the deciding factor for the visitors as he potted a final kill to force the GNAC match into a fifth and deciding set.

Emmanuel went on an early 7-2 run on the hosts in the final set, with Baxley serving for five consecutive points. Davis, Raffol, and Glenn came up big for the Lasers with a block on Ashanti Jackson's attack attempt to make the score 12-8, but Emmanuel fired back with the 4-2 run to secure the 15-9 set victory and the 3-2 match win.

The Saints return to action on Wednesday, April 1, as they welcome No. 6 Springfield College at 7:00 PM, while the Lasers host Emerson College on Thursday, April 2, for their Senior Day with first-serve slated for 7:00 PM.

- Release courtesy of Lasell College Sports Information