NEW LONDON, N.H. – The Colby-Sawyer men's volleyball team picked up a big Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) win on Thursday night defeating Dean College by a 3-0 (25-15, 25-20, 25-12) final at the Dan and Kathleen Hogan Sports Center. This marks the first home GNAC victory in program history. 

Rapid Recap:  

• The Chargers jumped up 7-0 in the first set highlighted by a kill and service ace from first year Lucas Lizotte (Hampstead, N.H.). Graduate student Andrew Kovacs (Wellesley, Mass.) kept the early success going with back-to-back kills to start a 10-3 Charger run. The Chargers closed strong with senior Orlando Plagata (Los Angeles, Calif.) picking up two late kills en route to a 25-15 set one win.
• In set two the Bulldogs started fast going ahead 5-1 early. The Chargers continued to battle back jumping ahead for the first time in the set at 15-14 after five-straight points including two kills by first year Christopher Huynh (Methuen, Mass.). Colby-Sawyer used the momentum to grow the lead with Plagata notching three more kills as senior Eric Miller (La Grange, Ill.) finished home the Bulldogs with a kill to finish the set 25-20. 
• Set three was back to the Chargers dominating with an early 7-1 run with Plagata adding a pair of kills. Another 6-1 run starred by a pair of service aces by Lizotte had the Chargers up 19-7. The Chargers held on for the clean sweep winning 25-12. 

Coaches Corner:

"To be honest, the most significant emotion after the match is one of gratitude", said interim head coach Scott Fitzgerald. "I'm grateful for the opportunity to be part of a team that works hard, embraces challenges, and most importantly plays for each other. The shift one seat over on the bench doesn't change the desire to simply do my part to help this team learn and grow. The best part of it all is these guys are a pleasure to be around and I'm having a lot of fun working with them."

Notes & Notables: 

• Plagata led the Chargers offense with 12 kills, four digs and a pair of assists. Huynh was next with eight kills, seven digs and an assists, while first year Isaac Davies (Hinesburg, Vt.) led the team in kill percentage hitting a .364 with seven kills, two digs and a block. 
• Lizotte continued to provide for the team with 31 assists to go with five service aces, 11 digs and one kill.
• For interim head coach Scott Fitzgerald, tonight's win marks a special moment as he picked up collegiate win number one after many years as an assistant coach.

Up next:
The Colby-Sawyer Chargers finish off the regular season on Saturday with a tri-match against Emmanuel College and Lasell University. The Chargers will also celebrate senior day as graduate student Andrew Kovacs and senior Eric Miller will both be honored before the matches.

For the latest on Colby-Sawyer Athletics, follow the Chargers on Facebook (www.facebook.com/CSCathletics), Twitter (www.twitter.com/CSCathletics) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/CSCathletics