Rochester, N.Y. - April 22, 2016 - The Springfield College men's volleyball team cruised past Kean University in the NCAA Division III Championship Quarterfinals on Friday evening at Kidera Gymnasium on the campus of Nazareth College.  The Pride won by the scores of 25-11, 25-13, 25-17.

Springfield, which is the No. 2 seed in this year's national tournament, improved to 27-3 and will play in the NCAA Championship Semifinals on Saturday at 6:30 against the winner of Carthage/Stevenson.  Kean, the No. 7 seed,  concluded its season with a 31-7 record.

Tonight's match pitted the only two programs in the country to reach each each of the first five NCAA Division III Championships since its inception in 2012. With the win, Springfield is the only program in the country to win at least one match in every NCAA Championship tournament since 2012.

The Pride entered the match with the top team hitting percentage in all of college volleyball, owning a .386 percentage. Behind the play from setters Luis Garcia Rubio (Bayamon, Puerto Rico) and Mike Neary (Ventura, Calif.), who combined for 35 assists, Springfield's attack racked up a .493 clip in the victory.

 Ricardo Padilla Ayala (San Juan, Puerto Rico) registered a match-high 10 kills on 14 errorless attempts for a .714 hitting percentage.  Greg Woods (Middletown, Conn.) added nine kills, hitting .533, while Luis Vega (Corozal, Puerto Rico) stuffed his stat sheet with eight kills, five digs, and three aces.  Eli Irizarry Pares (San Juan, Puerto Rico) led the defensive effort as he tied a career-high with 10 digs.  

Springfield raced out to a 7-2 lead to begin the match thanks to a pair of thunderous back row kills by Vega.  The Pride pushed its lead to 14-7 after back-to-back aces from Vega, and Padilla Ayala would later produce a kill off the Kean block to force the Cougars into their second timeout of the match at 17-9.  Eric Johnson (Tustin, Calif.) capped off a 4-0 Pride burst to seal the 25-11 win with Springfield's third ace of the frame.  Springfield hit at a .579 clip and limited Kean to a -.048 hitting percentage, with Vega pacing the way with four kills, and Woods and Padilla Ayala each pitching in three.

The Pride carried that momentum into the second set, opening the match with a 6-0 run that was highlighted by a huge solo block by Vega.  Springfield's lead grew to 14-5 when Kyle Jasuta (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) found the back corner in transition, and Kean called for a timeout.  The Pride continued to dictate the match, forcing Kean into eight errors and a -.120 hitting percentage as it eased its way to a 25-13 win.  Sullivan was able to play 12 different players in the set, with Woods notching three kills in helping the Pride hit .320

After Kean earned an early 3-2 lead, Springfield put together a 5-1 push, capped off by a solo stuff by Jasuta to snag a 7-4 advantage. Padilla Ayala manufactured a kill off the block at 15-10 heading into the media timeout, and Springfield's lead grew to 18-12 when Jasuta and Woods combined for a block capping off a long rally.  Springfield, which totaled 15 kills on 25 errorless attempts in teh third, wrapped up the three-game sweep when Padilla Ayala registered his sixth kill of the set.