UTICA, N.Y.—The tenth-ranked Hobart volleyball team cruised to back-to-back sweeps against SUNY Poly and Buffalo State to open the 2025 season this afternoon at the SUNY Poly Invitational. The Statesmen move to 2-0, while the Wildcats fall to 1-1 and the Bengals drop to 0-2 to start the season.

Graduate student Andrew Kim led Hobart with 30 kills through two matches, hitting .538 through six sets. Along with his 5.00 kills per set, Kim averaged 1.33 service aces per set, 1.33 digs per set and 6.75 points per set. He tallied a career-high seven service aces in the season-opening win over the Wildcats.

Sophomore Noah DeLong also impressed this afternoon as he combined for 15 kills (.571), four blocks, four assists, and two digs. First-year Alain Malcolm chipped in six kills (.250) and 11 blocks out of the middle in his collegiate debut. Sophomore Daniel Sappia added six kills (.133), three blocks, three digs and three service aces on the afternoon.

Sophomore Zack Farren and graduate student Benjamin Lincoln led the Statesmen from the setter position. Farren tallied 32 assists, and five digs, while Lincoln added 18 assists and three digs for Hobart.

MATCH MOMENTS:
 
Match 1 (SUNY Poly):

• The back-and-forth opening set saw the two sides tied 12 times and trade the lead five times. Hobart combined for 10 kills (.238) and was matched by nine kills (.353) from SUNY Poly, but the difference came at the service line for the Statesmen. Kim tallied three service aces to hand Hobart a 25-20 win to open the season.
• Hobart's offense continued to roll in the second set and was matched by an impressive performance by their defense as well. The Statesmen held the Wildcats to a match-low three kills, hitting -.143, while Hobart tallied 12 kills and a .348 hitting percentage. The Statesmen combined for four blocks to earn a 25-19 win in set two.
• SUNY Poly fought back in the must-win third set and forced 11 tie scores and six lead changes but were matched by an efficient Hobart attack that put down 13 kills (.440) in the third set. DeLong tallied six kills on six swings to lead the Statesmen to a 25-22 win to close out the sweep.

Match stats:

• Kim led the Statesmen with 12 kills, hitting a .545 clip in the sweep. DeLong chipped in nine kills (.538), while Malcolm added five kills on six swings (.833) out of the middle.
• Farren tallied a match-high 20 assists and was followed by Lincoln with eight assists and one dig in the win.
• Hobart made their presence known at the net and held an 8-2 edge in blocks. Malcolm tallied four blocks, while Kim, first-year Josh Reilly and sophomore Daniel Sappia chipped in two each.
• The Statesmen held a 10-4 advantage in service aces and was led by Kim with a career-high seven aces. Sappia, Malcolm and first-year Ben Taylor added one ace each in the win.
• Sophomore libero Gavin Meador led Hobart's defense with seven digs, while Kim chipped in four in the sweep. DeLong added two digs for the Statesmen.

Match 2 (Buffalo St.):

• The back-and-forth action continued into Hobart's second match of the day as the Statesmen and Bengals traded the lead four times and tied the score 14 times throughout the first set. Kim led Hobart with seven kills (.545) and helped the Statesmen to a close 26-24 win to open the match.
• The Statesmen continued to roll in the second set and combined for 12 kills as a team, hitting .500 collectively. Hobart held Buffalo State to just seven kills and a .043 hitting percentage as the Statesmen cruised to a 25-13 set two win.
• The Bengals fought back in the third set, putting down nine kills compared to the Statesmen's seven but Hobart continued to find crucial points from its block as they combined for six total team blocks in the third. Kim finished off the sweep with a kill to hand Hobart a 25-22 win in the third.

Match stats:

• Kim led Hobart for the second time of the day with 18 kills (.533) against the Bengals. He was followed by DeLong with six (.625) and Sappia with three (.167).
• Farren and Lincoln ran the Statesmen offense from the setter position and tallied 12 and 10 assists, respectively. The duo combined for seven digs as well.
• Hobart continued to shine at the net and tallied 13 blocks compared to Buff State's two. Malcolm tallied a career-high seven blocks, while Reilly chipped in a career-high six. DeLong added three blocks in the win.
• Meador led the Statesmen defensively with seven digs, while Farren chipped in five. Kim tallied four digs in the sweep.

UP NEXT:
 
Hobart will be back in action tomorrow to conclude action at the 2025 SUNY Poly Invitational. The tenth-ranked Statesmen will take on No.19 Lasell at 10 a.m. and will close out the weekend against No. 14 Misericordia at 2 p.m.