VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. – The Hood College men's volleyball team was swept in its first two matches of the VWU Invitational hosted by Virginia Wesleyan University, falling to the Marlins and Green Knights of St. Norbert College 3-0.
Set Scores
VWU won the first match 25-18, 25-14, 25-17.
The Green Knights defeated the Blazers 25-16, 25-14, 25-17.
Inside the Box Score
Sean Seely (Bethpage, N.Y./Bethpage High School) led the team with 16 kills on the day.
Alex Barton (Berwyn, Pa./Conestoga) accumulated four total blocks over both matches.
Gael Bravo (Lanham, Md./Bowie High School) ended the day with 17 assists and eight digs.
How it Happened – Virginia Wesleyan University
Despite starting the first set in the hole, Hood fought back to tie things at seven. A 7-1 run from VWU directly after had the hosts in control though. Despite never falling behind too much, the Blazers could not get closer than three points before the Marlins took a 1-0 match lead.
Hood kept pace with VWU to start the second set, but the Marlins built up a sizable 13-7 lead, then went on an 8-1 run a few points later to take a commanding 22-10 advantage. VWU did not give Hood a chance to spark a comeback, taking the set a few points later to set themselves up for a sweep.
The third set started off right with the Blazers taking two of the first three points, but the Marlins quickly retook the lead by scoring six of the next seven. Hood managed to get within one, but that would be the closest they would get the rest of the set, as VWU maintained a four-to-five-point lead the rest of the way before scoring five of the last six points to complete the sweep.
How it Happened – St. Norbert College
The Blazers started off set one with a 3-2 lead, but that came crashing down as the Green Knights answered with a 10-2 run. Although Hood trimmed its deficit down to four multiple times, a late five-point run by St. Norbert sealed the deal to take the
early match lead.
Bravo started the second set with a kill to give the Blazers the early lead, but that would be the only time they would be ahead in the set, as the Green Knights scored the next eight points to take a commanding lead and did not look back as they quickly closed the set out and looked to hand Hood its second sweep of the day.
An ace from Bravo again started the Blazers off on the right foot in the third set, but the Green Knights once again answered in a big way with a 9-1 run. St. Norbert held its lead strongly 17-9 just over halfway through the set, and although Hood put together a small 4-1 run late to make it a 23-17 game, the Green Knights would score the next two points to finish the match.
Up Next
The Blazers finish out the VWU Invitational with a match against Barton College Saturday, January 25 at 10 a.m.
