UTICA, N.Y.—The tenth-ranked Hobart volleyball team took down two nationally-ranked opponents this afternoon on the second day of the SUNY Poly Invitational to move to 4-0 on the season. The Statesmen defeated No. 19 Lasell 3-0 and closed out action with a five-set win over No. 14 Misericordia.

Graduate student Andrew Kim led Hobart on day two of the Invitational as he combined for 45 kills and a .446 hitting percentage through eight sets. Kim added 11 digs, four service aces and two blocks in the wins. He averaged 5.63 kills per set, 1.38 digs per set and 6.25 points per set to help the Statesmen to back-to-back wins over ranked opponents.

First-year Alain Malcolm had a big day for Hobart and combined for 12 kills (.333) seven blocks and a service ace. He tallied a career-high seven kills on nine swings (.667) against Lasell. Sophomore Daniel Sappia chipped in 10 kills (.067) from the pin and added 13 digs, two assists and two blocks. First-year Josh Reilly added nine kills (.571), three blocks and one service ace in the wins.

Sophomore Zack Farren and graduate student Benjamin Lincoln led the Statesmen from the setter position. Farren tallied 38 assists, nine digs and one ace through the two matches. With his ninth assist of the day, Farren officially surpassed the 1,000-career assist mark. He is the first Statesmen to surpass the milestone in program history. Lincoln combined for 28 assists, nine digs and one kill on the afternoon, including a career-high 21 assist performance against Misericordia.

MATCH MOMENTS:
 
Match 1 (Lasell):

• Action between two nationally ranked teams started with a back-and-forth battle as the two sides traded the lead six times and tallied 12 tie scores in the first set. Kim tallied six kills on seven swings and was helped out by a strong blocking effort as Hobart combined for five team blocks to grab an early 27-25 win.
• Both teams' offenses continued to roll in the second set as Hobart put down 15 kills (.394) compared to Lasell's 13 (.176). The Lasers had no response for Kim as he put down nine kills (.444) in the second set. Sophomore Aiden Kemora handed Hobart a 25-22 win in set two with a huge out of system swing.
• Hobart continued on its momentum into the final set as it combined for a match-high 16 kills (.214) in the third. Malcolm and Kim combined for 12 kills and one block for the Statesmen to help clinch their first win over a ranked opponent this season. Hobart defeated Lasell 27-25 in the third to complete the sweep.

Match stats:

• Kim led the Statesmen with a season-high 24 kills, hitting .489 in the sweep. Malcolm chipped in a career-high seven kills (.667) out of the middle, while sophomore Noah DeLong (.000) and Reilly (.667) added four kills each in the win.
• Farren and Lincoln led Hobart from the setter position and tallied 22 and seven assists, respectively. The duo added seven digs, one service ace and one kill. With his ninth assist of the day, Farren surpassed the 1,000-career assist mark.
• The Statesmen held a 6-4 advantage in blocking against the Lasers and were led by Malcolm with three. DeLong and Reilly chipped in two blocks each in the sweep.
• Sophomore libero Gavin Meador led Hobart defensively with eight digs in the win. Kim chipped in a season-high seven, while Sappia added six through three sets.

Match 2 (Misericordia):

• The back-and-forth action continued in Hobart's second match of the day. The Statesmen opened the match with a 14 kill (.391) performance, while the Cougars put down 10 kills (.318). A Misericordia service error handed Hobart a 25-21 win in set one.
• The Cougars fought back in the second set and combined for 14 kills (.258). The Statesmen also combined for 14 kills (.357), but Misericordia found crucial points from the service line as they tallied four aces to sneak away with a 25-23 win in set two.
• The third set saw 11 tie scores and three lead changes between the two sides. Hobart found seven kills from its outside hitters, while Misericordia tallied several hitting errors, handing the Statesmen a 25-21 win in set three to regain the lead.
• In the must-win set, the Cougars stormed back and tallied a match-high 16 kills (.538) as a team while holding the Statesmen to a match-low five kills (-.105). Jared Piontkowski led the charge for Misericordia with five kills (.444) to grab a dominating 25-15 win in set four, forcing a decisive fifth set.
• Misericordia jumped out to an early lead in the fifth set but saw six straight hitting errors give Hobart the 12-8 lead. The Statesmen wouldn't look back as Kim tallied two late kills to close out the thrilling match with a 15-10 win for Hobart.

Match stats:

• Kim led Hobart for the second time of the day with 21 kills (.395) against the Cougars. He was followed by Sappia with a season-high eight kills (.188). Malcolm (.400) and Reilly (.500) chipped in five kills each out of the middle.
• Lincoln and Farren once again ran the offense from the setter position. Lincoln tallied a career-high 21 assists, while Farren chipped in 16. The duo also combined for 11 digs in the five-set win.
• The Statesmen continued to shine at the net and tallied seven blocks as a team. Malcolm led Hobart with four blocks, while sophomore Aiden Kemora chipped in three.
• Hobart's defense stepped up big time against Misericordia and recorded 37 digs as a team. Meador led the team with 10 digs, while Sappia chipped in seven and Lincoln tallied six in the win.

COACHES CORNER:

"I am so proud of our team's ability to stay calm under a lot of pressure," said Head Coach Steve England. "We were able to adapt to succeed in a tough environment. Every team we played this weekend gave us their best. Go Hobart!"

UP NEXT:
 
Hobart will be back in action Friday, Jan. 2, as it hosts Bard for its home-opener. Action between the Statesmen and the Raptors is set for 2 p.m. in Bristol Gym.