SPRINGFIELD, Mass., April 9, 2007 – The Springfield College men’s volleyball team, under the direction of nine-year Head Coach Charlie Sullivan, has played its way into this season’s Molten Division III Invitational Championship. The four-team championship, hosted by three-time defending champion Juniata College, will be held at Memorial Gymnasium in the Kennedy Sports and Recreation Center in Huntingdon, Pa., on Friday and Saturday, April 13th and 14th.

The Pride is in search of its fifth national championship overall and first since it won three consecutive titles from 2001-’03. SC earned a berth into this year’s Molten by qualifying for the Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (EIVA) Division III Championship, a match in which the fourth-ranked Pride upset No. 2 Juniata, 3-0 (30-25, 38-36, 30-25) on Saturday (Apr. 7). Carthage College and the Stevens Institute of Technology are the other two teams competing for the crown this weekend. Carthage received an invitation as an at-large selection representing the Midwest and West regions, and Stevens claimed the championship of the North East Collegiate Volleyball Championship (NECVA) to earn an automatic bid.

SC learned today (Apr. 10) that it will be the third-seeded team at the Molten this weekend. The Pride will take on Juniata in the second semifinal on Friday evening, April 13th, in an 8:00 p.m. start. No. 1 Carthage College will face No. 4 Stevens Institute of Technology in the first semifinal at 5:00 p.m. On Saturday, April 14th, the consolation match will be held at 5:00 p.m., followed by the championship match at 8:00 p.m. Ticket prices are $5 for adults, $3 for students with identification, and $2 for children under 12. The seedings and match-ups for this weekend’s championship play will be announced at a later time.

With SC’s victory on Saturday afternoon at Juniata College in the EIVA Division III Championship, the Pride has accumulated an 18-8 overall record on the season. SC finished its EIVA Hay Division campaign with an 8-2 record, which is currently good for second place. The Pride’s 3-0 victory at Juniata on Saturday marked the first loss for the Eagles (13-7) against a Division III opponent since 2004 when SC knocked off Juniata (3-1), a stretch that lasted 32 matches.

Heading into this weekend’s Division III championship action, the Pride has recorded an impressive 9-3 overall record against Division III foes this season. Sophomore opposite Ryan Fredrickson (Manahawkin, N.J.) has led the way for SC against DIII squads, racking up a team-high 121 kills (3.90/game). Freshman outside hitter AJ Nally (Rochester, N.Y.) is right behind Fredrickson with 120 kills against Division III teams, good for a 3.43 kill-per-game average. The first-year has also registered 80 digs (2.29/game). Leading the team in digs against DIII competition is junior libero Brandon Waas (Spencerport, N.Y.) with 91 (2.68/game), and leading the way in blocking is sophomore middle blocker Andy Sipe (New Oxford, Pa.) with 67 (1.76/game).

Overall this season, in the Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (EIVA) rankings, Sipe is currently second in blocks (145 total, 1.67/game) and sixth in hitting percentage (.425). The Pride currently has two players ranked amongst the top ten in digs, with Nally ranked fifth (195 total, 2.32/game), and Waas ranked seventh (170 total, 2.30/game). Junior outside hitter Eric Palumbo (Chili, N.Y.), who suffered a season-ending knee injury, is still ranked fourth in the EIVA in service aces (23 total, 0.47/game) and sixth in kills (215 total, 4.39/game). SC as a team is the top-ranked squad in the EIVA in digs with an average of 11.24 per game (1,012 total).

published: 04/09/2007