AURORA, N.Y. - The SUNY Poly men's volleyball team took on the Wells College Express on Tuesday night in a North Eastern Athletic Conference match with playoff implications. The Wildcats and the Express came into the game ranked fourth and third respectively with just a game separating the two teams. The Wildcats needed a win to tie Wells for third place and that is exactly what they did, winning in a thrilling five set match 29-27, 20-25, 14-25, 25-23, 15-9.
The Wildcats attack saw three players finish the match with double-digit kills. Max Szuba (Irondequoit, N.Y.) hit .294 with a match high and career high 24 kills on 51 attacks. Szuba also had two block assists and three digs in the win.
Nick Hagen (Hilton, N.Y.) had a team high four blocks in the middle for the Wildcats. The senior had 11 kills, hitting .588 on 17 swings.
Ryan Gloff (Brockport, N.Y.) hit .238 for the Wildcats. The sophomore had 10 kills on 21 swings and tied Derek Connelly (Oneida, N.Y.) with a team high two service aces.
Zach Goggin (Feeding Hills, Mass.) and Piotr Kasza (Mechowiev, Poland) combined for 68 assists running the 6-2 for the Wildcats. Goggin had 37 assists and eight digs. Kasza had 31 assists, six digs, and three kills.
For Wells, Brandon Perdichio had a team high 18 kills on 36 swings, hitting .306. Perdichio also had four digs in the match. Caden O'Loughlin had 15 Kills on 42 swings and had a service ace, seven digs, a solo block, and a block assist. Trysten McLaughlin had a game high four service aces. Mike Hartman had a team high 10 digs.
The Wildcats improve to 14-13 overall and 9-4 in the NEAC with the win. The Express drop to 15-11 overall and 9-4 in the NEAC. The Wildcats will be back in action this weekend when they travel to D'Youville to take part in the last NEAC pool play event of the season. The Wildcats will face Medaille at 2:00 PM and D'Youville at 6:00 PM on Saturday and will face Hilbert at 10:00 AM on Sunday.