Springfield, Mass. – March 24, 2012 – The Springfield College men’s volleyball team cruised past both Baruch and Wentworth to win the Springfield College Invitational on Saturday afternoon in Blake Arena. The Pride bested Baruch 25-14, 25-21, 25-22 before downing Wentworth 25-21, 25-18, 25-16.

The Pride reached the 20-win plateau as it now stands at 21-5.

In the victory of Baruch, the Pride put on an offensive show, hitting .487, with Mike Becker finishing with 38 assists running the offense. Alistair Matthews continued to shine on the right side, totaling a match-high 13 kills at a . 579 clip and Angel Perez added nine kills, four digs, and three blocks. Springfield’s middles were both extremely effective as Greg Falcone hit .727 with eight kills and four blocks while Jimmy O’Leary notched seven kills at four blocks of his own. Nick Ferry added a match-best eight digs.

The Bearcats finished the afternoon hitting .189 with a balanced offensive attack. Both Jack McKee and Nick Smith registered eight kills, while Vincent Cruz chipped in seven kills. McKee had a team-best three blocks and Danny Olson handed out 26 helpers.

The lone senior of Springfield’s squad, Jeff Gutmann put together an amazing performance in his final regular season home game in Blake Arena against Wentworth. Gutmann hammered out 16 kills, with no errors, to hit a scorching .727 to go along with four digs and three blocks. John Coen notched seven kills and a match-high four blocks and Mike Becker delivered 36 assists in leading Springfield to a dazzling .451 hitting percentage.

Wentworth’s Ross Burdett had a very nice match, recording 12 kills at a .500 clip, while Nate Perry added 10 kills of his own. Rick Pignataro finished with a match-high six digs and Tyer Moriarty was credited with 22 assists in two sets. For the match, Wentworth hit .203.

Springfield will now prepare to play in the Vassar Invitational next weekend when it will play New Paltz, Nazareth, Johnson and Wales, and Vassar.

Springfield College Invitational
Day 2
Juniata 3, Baurch 1 (25-16, 23-25, 25-23, 25-18)
Kean 3, Wentworth 1 (26-24, 25-15, 16-25, 25-23)
Springfield 3, Baruch 0 (25-14, 25-21, 25-22)
Juniata 3, Kean 0 (25-21, 25-17, 25-22)
Springfield 3, Wentworth 0 (25-21, 25-18, 25-16)