Springfield, Mass. - February 24, 2022 - Competing for the first time in nearly two weeks, the Springfield College men's volleyball team prevailed in four sets against Wentworth on Thursday evening in Blake Arena.  The Pride won by the set scores of 25-23, 20-25, 31-29, 25-20. 

In their first match since February 12, Springfield improved to 11-0 win the win, while Wentworth, who was tied for 10th in the most recent national poll, slipped to 11-3.

Ranked No. 1 in the country again in this week's AVCA Division III National Poll, Springfield was led by the duo of Jarrett Anderson (San Jose, Calif.) and Brennen Brandow (Manorville, N.Y.), as Anderson totaled 20 kills on a .486 clip to go along with five blocks, five digs, and four aces, while Brandow posted 16 kills.  Matt Lilley (Stony Brook, N.Y.) was credited with 43 assists in helping Springfield hit .352 on the night and Nate Reynolds (Baltimore, Md.) contributed five kills, four blocks, and three aces.  Johjan Mussa Robles (Caguas, Puerto Rico) led all players with 16 digs and Chris Parker (East Northport, N.Y.) recorded six blocks and four aces. 

For Wentworth, Jacob LaBouliere delivered 20 kills, accounting for nearly half of his team's offensive output on the night.  Connor Adams had 34 assists and five aces as the Leopards his .198 in the setback. 

The opening set featured 10 ties and six lead changes as the teams traded blows throughout the frame.  Knotted at 20-20, a Wentworth service error coupled with Anderson manufacturing a kill off the block forced the visitors into a timeout.  The Leopards would get within one three times before Liam York (Kailua, Hawaii) blasted his fourth kill of the set to complete the 25-23 win. 

Tied up at 10 in the second, Wentworth rattled off a 3-0 burst and would open up a 19-15 on an ace.  The Pride would get as close as 22-20, but Wentworth closed out the set with back-to-back aces to bring their game total to five to gain a 25-20 win.  Despite totaling 14 kills at a .455 clip, Springfield was daunted by eight service errors. 

The visitors carried that momentum into the third and held a sizeable 18-11 lead following another ace.  However, Springfield showed plenty of grit and poured in a 13-6 burst to even things up at 24 after an ace by Parker.  Springfield would then fight off four set points before Brandow and Anderson notched consecutive kills to put the Pride up 29-28.  Three points later, Parker, Anderson, and Noah Weislo (Orchard Park, N.Y.) clamped down for a triple block to complete the comeback in a set where Anderson led the way with eight kills.

Even at 8-8 in the fourth, Springfield used a 6-2 spurt that was capped off by an overpass kill from Reynolds to force Wentworth into a timeout.  Reynolds would later deliver consecutive aces at 21-13 and York ripped a ball off the block for match point at 24-17.  Four points later, Anderson would get free for his 20th kill of the night in the 25-20 victory.  

On Saturday, Springfield will travel to take on No. 2 Vassar at 1 pm before a match versus Illinois Tech at 3 pm.

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