MILTON, Mass. — First year right side hitter Ryan Rathbun (North Kingstown, R.I.) put down a career-high 11 kills to lead the Wheaton College (Mass.) men's volleyball team to a 3-0 (25-21, 25-18, 25-18) win over Fisher College this evening as part of a tri-match at host Curry College's Miller Gymnasium in Milton, Mass.
The Lyons improve to 7-9 on the season, while the Falcons fall to 0-9.
Wheaton posted a .395 hitting percentage, including a .407 mark in the second set and a dominant .680 clip in the third frame in addition to firing nine aces. Fisher was held to a .175 hitting rate.
Rathbun hit .421 and served up a pair of aces, while sophomore middle blocker Jimmy Ciummo (Barrington, R.I.) put down eight kills on a torrid .700 hitting clip in addition to a pair of aces and five digs for the Lyons. Sophomore outside hitter Cole Arsenault (East Greenwich, R.I.) contributed with six kills on a .308 hitting percentage and added two aces and six digs. First year setter Sebastian DeCubellis (Lincoln, R.I.) directed the offense with 31 assists, while firing two aces and picking up five digs.
Junior right side hitter Thomas Bollentin (South Kingstown, R.I.) led the Falcons with 10 kills and hit .250 to go with three digs and a block solo, while first year outside hitter Carlos Posado (Medellin, Colombia) spiked for seven kills on a .375 hitting rate and added two aces, seven digs and a block assist. First year outside hitter Jefferson Umana (Everett, Mass.) set for 16 assists, served for an ace and got down for a pair of digs.
Fisher opened the first set with a healthy 9-2 lead, including a pair of Bollentin kills, but Wheaton stormed back with a 15-4 stretch, led by a pair of kills and an ace from Rathbun to take a 17-13 margin. The Falcons knotted the set at 19-19, following a 6-2 burst. The Lyons closed out the frame with six of the final eight points, including a pair of kills from Rathbun to give Wheaton a 1-0 lead in the match.
The teams were tied at 6-6, before Ciummo capped a 6-3 run with an ace to give the Lyons a 12-9 margin. Bollentin put down a pair of kills to pull Fisher within 12-11, before DeCubellis led a 10-4 stretch to give Wheaton a 22-15 advantage. The Falcons scored three of the next four points, including a kill from Bollentin, to cut the deficit to 23-18. Rathbun gave the Lyons a two-set advantage with the final kill of the frame.
Wheaton doubled up on Fisher early in the third set with an 8-4 lead, backed by a pair of kills from sophomore outside hitter Ellis Vasquez (Medford, Mass.). The Falcons clawed out four of the next five points to pull within 9-8, before the Lyons increased their margin to 12-9. Fisher later closed to within a point at 15-14, but Wheaton finished the frame with a 10-4 stretch, fueled by three kills from Ciummo, to give the Lyons a 25-18 set win and a 3-0 match victory.
Wheaton returns to the court on Tuesday, March 3 when it hosts Elms College on Tuesday, March 3 at 7:00 p.m., while the Falcons head to Franklin, Mass. to take on Dean College on March 18 at 7:00 p.m.
