BUFFALO, N.Y.—The 15th-ranked Hobart volleyball team cruised to a 3-0 nonconference sweep of Buffalo State this afternoon in its regular season finale. The Statesmen move to 18-10 on the season with a 3-4 mark in the UVC, while the Bengals fall to 14-15 overall.

Hobart put on a dominant performance in the nonconference sweep. The Statesmen put down 44 kills (.257) compared to the Bengals 19 (.023). Hobart combined for 48 digs to Buffalo State's 31 and tallied 43 assists to the Bengals' 18. The Statesmen served up four aces and recorded six blocks as a team while the Bengals tallied one service ace and four blocks.

Graduate student Andrew Kim led Hobart with a match-high 21 kills on an impressive .529 hitting percentage. He added seven digs, two blocks, two service aces and two assists in the win. First-year Daniel Sappia chipped in nine kills (.071), and eight digs in the sweep. Classmate Grayson Getz added five kills (.250), four digs and two blocks out of the middle for the Statesmen.

Chris Laboy led Buffalo State with seven kills (.192), two digs and one block. Jackson Stang tallied a team-leading 17 assists and 11 digs in the loss.
  
MATCH MOMENTS:

• The Statesmen grabbed an early lead after an impressive performance in the first set that saw Hobart put down 14 kills (.333) compared to Buffalo State's seven (.000). Kim exploded for eight kills (.700) in the opening set to lead the Statesmen to a 25-16 win.
• Hobart used a balanced attack in the second set to extend its lead to 2-0. Kim tallied five kills (.300), while Sappia chipped in four and Getz added two kills (.667) in the second set to hand the Statesmen a 25-20 win.
• The Statesmen put on a dominant performance in the third, combining for 18 kills (.412) compared to the Bengals six (.034). Hobart had six different players record at least one kill and were led by Kim with eight (.571). The Statesmen closed out the match with a 25-18 win in set three to complete the nonconference sweep.

MATCH STATS:

• Kim led the Statesmen with 21 kills (.529), while Sappia added nine (.071). Getz chipped in five (.250) and first-year Aiden Kemora recorded four (.077).
• First-year setter Zack Farren recorded a match-high 34 assists. He added eight digs, one block, one service ace and one kill in the win.
• Hobart recorded 48 digs as a team and were led by first-year libero Gavin Meador with eight. Sappia and Farren also chipped in eight while Kim added seven digs.
• The Statesmen combined for six total blocks to the Bengals' one. First-year Nate Magni led the team with four, while Kim and Getz chipped in two each.

COACHES CORNER:

"Our regular season has been a giant success considering this is our first year of competition as a program," said Head Coach Steve England. "The hard work and dedication to improve every single day is a tribute to our positive team culture. I am so happy that we get at least one more week together as we prepare for the UVC Championships. Go Hobart!"

UP NEXT:
 
Hobart will be back in action Friday, April 12, when it heads to Vassar for the UVC Championship quarterfinals round. The fifth-seeded Statesmen will take on the fourth seed, which will be determined later today. More information will be released as it becomes available.