ALBANY, N.Y. – Russell Sage College kicked off its home slate by splitting a pair of matches tonight in the Kahl Campus Center.
The Gators (1-2) erased a 2-0 deficit to take the opener against Colby-Sawyer (18-25, 15-25, 25-18, 27-25, 17-15).
Sophomore setter/outside hitter Jack McWilliam (Fishkill, NY/Arlington) registered a double-double of 12 kills and 11 digs in the comeback victory.
Junior middle hitter Joseph Vice (Schenectady, NY/Mohonasen) tossed in ten kills on .238 hitting, while setter Ryan Jennings (North Brunswick, NJ/North Brunswick Township), a graduate student, dished out a game-high 38 assists.
Senior opposite Elijah Tortorici (Clifton Park, NY/Mohonasen) contributed nine kills, 10 digs, and four aces.
Junior middle hitter Austin Ponsness paced Colby-Sawyer (0-1) with 18 kills on .302 hitting. Freshman setter CJ Murphy recorded 28 assists and 12 digs for a double-double, while sophomore middle hitter Isaac Davies tallied 13 kills, seven digs, and four aces.
Wisconsin Lutheran (2-0) swept RSC in the second game of the night (25-17, 26-24, 25-21).
Tortorici, McWilliam, and freshman outside hitter Alex Bergman (Kremmling, CO/West Grand) registered four kills apiece to pace RSC. McWilliam recorded 12 digs, while Jennings tallied 15 assists.
Freshman Drew Wempner paced the Warriors (2-0), which hit .295 as a team, with 10 kills on .364 hitting. Sophomore setter Jay Thammavongsa distributed 26 assists across the three sets.
Overall, four Gators totaled double-digit kills on the night. McWilliam, who accumulated a team-high 23 digs in the twin-bill, led the way with 16 kills.
Looking ahead, RSC plays next on Wednesday at SUNY Poly. The non-conference action is set to begin at 7:00 pm.
Notes: The Gators began their second spring with Reid Hartl at the helm…He guided RSC to a spot in the New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) Championship Tournament in his debut campaign…Seven players returned from the squad…The Gators were picked to finish seventh in the conference by the member coaches…Setter Ryan Jennings (North Brunswick, NJ/North Brunswick Township), a graduate student, and middle hitter Andrew Samson (Queens, NY/Pathways), both graduate students, were voted co-captains…Jennings began the season with 2,157 career assists, second-most by a Gator…Kyle Ray '13 holds the program record with 2,910 career assists…Four newcomers, two from New York, one from Colorado, and another from Texas, joined the program in 2023.
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