New York, N.Y. - April 9, 2015 - The Springfield College men's volleyball team rebounded from dropping the opening set to earn a four-game victory over NYU on Thursday evening.  The Pride won by the scores of 24-26, 26-24, 25-18, 25-19.

Springfield, which was ranked fourth in the latest AVCA Division III National Coaches Poll, improves to 22-6 and has won its last 15 Division III matches.  The Violets, ranked ninth nationally, are now 16-10 on the year.

Ricardo Padilla Ayala (San Juan, Puerto Rico) was sensational in the win as he registered a career-high 16 kills at a .542 clip to go along with three aces and a pair of blocks.  Keaton Pieper (Dallas, Texas) directed Springfield's offense to a .333 hitting percentage as he posted a double double with 45 assists and 10 digs, while both Angel Perez (Naranjito, Puerto Rico) and Jason Mascoe (Uniondale, N.Y.) delivered nine kills apiece.

After earning a 10-6 lead to begin the match, Springfield was outscored 10-5 over the next 15 points as the host Violets took a 16-15 advantage on a Klein kill.  The Pride would take control of the set and open up a 21-17 advantage following a Pieper ace, but after a Padilla Ayala kill put the Pride ahead 23-20, the hosts rattled off four-straight, capped off by a huge Corbett and Bueno block.  Joseth Irizarry Feliciano (Adjuntas, Puerto Rico) sided out for the visitors with his third kill of the set, but a service error and Klein kill completed the rally for NYU en route to the 26-24 win.

The Pride trailed 12-11 in the second set but reeled off a 6-1 surge to snag a 17-13 cushion.  However, the hosts answered back with three-straight points to force the Pride into a timeout.  Consecutive kills from Perez put the Pride up 22-21, and after things evened up at 24 apiece, Padilla Ayala ripped a cross court kill and Greg Woods (Middletown, Conn.) bounced an overpass for the 26-24 victory.  The Pride's offense was especially dynamic in the frame, pounding out 20 kills at a .500 clip, including seven from Perez.

Springfield broke open a 10-9 lead in the third with three-straight points, using an Eric Johnson (Tustin, Calif.) ace to force NYU into a timeout.  The Violets closed within 17-16, but another three point burst from the Pride, highlighted by a Pieper ace, gave Springfield a 20-16 cushion.   The visitors closed out the game with the final five points as Padilla Ayala took over, recording a kill and three-straight aces to give Springfield the 25-18 win.

Facing a 10-7 deficit in the fourth, Springfield put together a remarkable 7-0 run, as Pieper and Mascoe combined for a monster block to put the Pride up 14-7.  Springfield benefited from 11 NYU attack errors to coast to a 25-19 win and pick up the four-game victory.

Springfield will wrap up its regular season on Saturday when it hosts NJIT in Blake Arena at 3:00 pm.