Mountaineers Fall To First Place Newbury

BENNINGTON, Vt. - The Southern Vermont College men's volleyball team fell behind early against New England Collegiate Conference opponent the Newbury College Nighthawks losing 3-0 (30-7, 30-15, 30-19) Saturday night in the Field House. Senior middle-hitter Mark Thomas led Newbury with 10 kills on 11 attempts and freshman setter Sean Copher tallied 34 assists. Sean Moore led SVC with five kills.

With the win, Newbury improves to 9-4 overall, 5-0 NECVA, 3-0 NECC, while Southern Vermont slips to 1-7 overall, 1-6 NECVA, 0-4 NECC.

The Nighthawks jumped ahead early with a 12-0 lead, when SVC scored on a Newbury error. Junior setter Matt Talamantes had a solid 16 assists in the first game. Junior Mike Biuso tallied 13 kills (.435) and also had four aces from the service line. Newbury had 20 kills and no errors on 30 attempts in the first game.

The Mountaineers faired better in the second game scoring 15 points, but really shined in the final game going point for point with the Nighthawks until about midway through the game. With 16-14 on the scoreboard NC put the game away on a 14-5 run. Sophomore Matt Schwab led SVC with eight digs and had three kills. Junior Ruari Clancy and senior Ryan Heron each chipped in seven digs. Rounding out the Mountaineers box was junior setter Neel Patel who had 11 assists.

Southern Vermont is back in action Saturday, February 20th, when it hosts a North East Collegiate Volleyball Association tri-match versus Daniel Webster College and Wentworth Institute of Technology. The matches are slated for 11:00 a.m., 1:00 p.m., and 3:00 p.m. in the Field House.

- Game story submitted by Joseph Frey, Sports Information Director - Southern Vermont College

- Game photo provided by Samantha Yanofsky