NEW LONDON, N.H. - The Colby-Sawyer men's volleyball team hosted their first tri-match of the season featuring Emmanuel College and Fisher College on Saturday. The Chargers fell in their match against the Saints by a 3-0 final score but ended the day with a win after defeating the Falcons by a 3-0 final.

Rapid Recap (Emmanuel) L (25-14, 25-9, 25-12): 

• The Saints took an early 5-3 led in the opening set featuring a kill by Trey Guest. Emmanuel went on an 8-2 run that was started by a kill from Michael Shelley and ended with a service ace from Josh McDonald. Junior Austin Ponsness (Queen Creek, Ariz.) notched a kill off the assist from first year CJ Murphy (Sudbury, Mass.) to make it 13-6. The Chargers narrowed the Saints lead after Emmanuel committed three attacking errors in a row. The Saints built a 7-2 run highlighted by four kills from Shelley putting them ahead 22-11. Emmanuel would win the first set by a final score of 25-14.
• After Emmanuel took a 2-0 advantage in the second set, Murphy responded by notching his first kill of the match. The Saints quickly extended their lead to 11-3 which was disrupted by a kill from Ponsness. Colby-Sawyer capitalized on Emmanuel errors to make it 15-8, but the Saints would string together eight consecutive points to help earn them the win by a 25-9 final.
• In the third set. sophomore Isaac Davies (Hinesburg, Vt.) recorded a kill to tie it at 1-1. The Saints held a narrow lead as Davies notched his fourth kill of the match to make it 8-6. An 8-1 run by Emmanuel featuring four service aces gave the Saints a 16-7 advantage. The Chargers continued to battle with Davies collecting a pair of kills, but the Saints would secure the win in the third set by a 25-12 final.  
• Davies led the Chargers with seven kills along with four digs and a solo block. Ponsness ended the match with three kills, three digs, and two solo blocks.

Rapid Recap (Fisher) W (25-14, 27-25, 25-19, 25-21, 15-8): 

• The Falcons began the first set of the match by taking an early 5-3 advantage after a kill from Carlos Diaz. The Chargers then went on a 5-0 run featuring a kill and two service aces from Ponsness as well as a kill from Davies. The Falcons fought back mid-way through the set to regain a 14-13 led. After Colby-Sawyer tied the set at 15-15, Davies would string together three kills to take back a 19-15 led. Colby-Sawyer held off Fisher from making a comeback late in the set thanks to the efforts by first year Maverick Thivierge (Concord, N.H.) and senior Phu Ngo (Everett, Mass.) who each recorded a kill apiece to help the Chargers win the set by a 25-21 final.
• In the second set, the Chargers started strong on the attack taking a 4-2 advantage. After the Falcons tied it at 4-4, the Chargers would connect five consecutive points thanks to a pair of kills from both Davies and Thivierge as well as a service ace by Ponsness to make it 9-4. Davies tallied three more kills to help extend Colby-Sawyer's lead to 14-6. The Chargers commanded the end of the set after increasing their advantage into double-digits and secure a 2-0 led heading into the third set.
• With the Falcons holding a 3-2 led early in the third set, the Chargers offensive responded by going on a 5-0 run kicked off from a Davies kill and finished by a kill from Ngo. Colby-Sawyer continued to extend their advantage after going on another 5-0 run to make it 14-7. Following back-and-forth action towards the end of the set, the Chargers would secure the final four points of the match to defeat the Falcons 25-12 and earn their first home victory of the season.
• Davies ended the match with 22 kills to go along with 10 digs, three service aces, and an assist. Thivierge recorded a career-high eight kills as well as two digs, one block, and an assist in the Chargers victory over the Falcons. Murphy led the passing effort with 31 assists, four digs, and a service ace.

Player Spotlight:
"It was really nice to see the team come together after the first set," said sophomore Isaac Davies (Hinesburg, Vt.) following their win over Fisher College. "I felt better today than any other day so far this season. First year CJ Murphy (Sudbury, Mass.) has been connecting with a lot of the other players on our team. We are looking forward to the next match and putting up a good contest."
 
Up Next: 
The Chargers will be on the road for their next tri-match on Saturday, February 18th hosted by Emmanuel College featuring Lasell University.

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