United Volleyball Conference Hobart Athletic Communications

Hobart downs No. 17 Vassar in Five-set thriller

POUGHKEEPSIE, NY – The Hobart volleyball team opened up UVC play with a thrilling five-set win over No. 17 Vassar this evening in Kenyon Gymnasium. With the win, the Statesmen improve to 7-9 overall and 1-0 in conference play, while the Brewers fall to 4-6 on the season and 0-2 in the UVC.
 
Junior outside hitter Aiden Kemora led Hobart with a career-high 18 kills (.212) in the win. He added three digs and one block as well through five sets. First-year Harry Fromberg chipped in 13 kills (.250), four blocks and two digs, while junior Noah DeLong added 11 kills (.474), four digs and two assists for the Statesmen.
 
Junior Daniel Sappia put down five kills in the win and added four digs, two service aces and two blocks for Hobart. Sophomores Alain Malcolm (.143) and Kian Kischke (.667) chipped in three and two kills each out of the middle, respectively. The duo combined for nine blocks, three digs and two aces in the crucial conference victory.
 
Junior Zack Farren and first-year Tor Boughal led the Statesmen from the setter position and combined for 43 assists. Farren tallied a team-leading 24 assists and added five digs, while Boughal chipped in 19 assists in the win.
 
Vassar was led by Walter Birnbaum's 14 kills (.320), five digs, two blocks and two service aces. Armaan Desai (.389) and Henry Bonney (.226) added 11 kills each and combined for seven blocks, three service aces and two digs. Parker Schoenl tallied a match-high 32 assists in the loss.

MATCH MOMENTS:
  • Hobart struggled to find an offensive rhythm in the opening set, combining for just six kills (.000) while also recording six hitting errors. Vassar combined for 10 kills (.200) as a team as they opened up the conference thriller with a 25-19 win in set one.
  • The Statesmen responded well in the second set as they put down 14 kills (.267) as a team compared to the Brewers' 10 (.250). Hobart and Vassar traded the points for the majority of the set but a big kill from DeLong would close out set two in favor the Statesmen 25-23.
  • Vassar answered with a nine kill (.571) one error showing in the third set, while Hobart put down 12 kills (.167) but racked up eight hitting errors. The Brewers used several scoring runs to take the momentum of the set and close out the third set on top, 25-17.
  • Hobart fired back in the must-win fourth set, putting down a match-high 15 kills (.480) and holding Vassar to 11 kills (.318). The Statesmen jumped out to an early lead and never looked back. A Kemora kill would close out the fourth set with a 25-18 win for Hobart, forcing a decisive fifth set.
  • The Statesmen and Brewers traded the early points in the decisive fifth set as both Hobart (.063) and Vassar (0.000) combined for five kills each as a team. The Statesmen took control down the stretch as it closed out the fifth on a 3-0 scoring run thanks to kills from Fromberg and Kemora. Kemora's 18th kill of the night would close out the conference thriller in favor of Hobart 15-11.
MATCH STATS:
  • Kemora led the Statesmen with a career-high 18 kills (.212) in the win. Fromberg chipped in 13 kills (.250), while DeLong added 11 (.474). Sappia put down five kills, while Malcolm (.143) and Kischke (.667) chipped in three and two kills each out of the middle, respectively.
  • Farren and Boughal ran Hobart's offense from the setter position, tallying 24 and 19 assists each, respectively. The duo also combined for five digs in the win.
  • The Statesmen combined for 28 digs as a team and was led by Farren with five. Sappia, DeLong and first-year Tyler Lavell added four digs each, while Kemora and first-year Maxwell Stotsky chipped in three digs each.
  • As a team, Hobart combined for nine blocks and was led by Malcolm with five. Kischke and Fromberg added four blocks each, while Sappia tallied two in the win.
COACHES CORNER:
 
"I am so proud of the grit we played with today," said Head Coach Steve England. "We stayed connected and did not blink when we faced adversity. Vassar is an amazing program and a well-coached team. Stealing an away win in the UVC is such a hard thing to do. We have a lot of volleyball left to play this season and I look forward to continuing on this momentum."
 
UP NEXT:
 
Hobart will be back in action Saturday, Feb. 28, when it hosts St. John Fisher in another crucial UVC matchup. Action between the Statesmen and the Cardinals is set for 1 p.m. in Bristol Gym.