GENEVA, N.Y.—The 16th-ranked Hobart volleyball team opened its season with back-to-back wins as it swept Russell Sage before rallying to defeat No. 20 Misericordia in a reverse sweep. With the wins, the Statesmen improve to 2-0 on the season, while the Gators fall to 0-2 overall and the Cougars fall to 0-1 on the season.
 
Through two matches, first-year Harry Fromberg led Hobart with 19 kills, hitting .250 through eight sets played. He added four blocks, three digs and one service ace through the two wins. Junior Aiden Kemora chipped in 11 kills (.400), eight digs, six service aces and one block on the afternoon. He tallied a career-high six aces in the win over Russell Sage.
 
Junior Noah DeLong put down a season-high 12 kills (.320) in the come-from-behind victory over Misericordia. He added two digs, two service aces and one block in the reverse sweep. Classmate Daniel Sappia chipped in nine kills (.292), three digs and two service aces in the five-set win.
 
Junior setter Zack Farren combined for 41 assists through two matches. He added seven digs, one block and one service ace in the wins. First-year Charlie Dugan came off the bench in both matches and combined for 17 assists, seven digs, five service aces and a block. Defensively, the Statesmen were led by junior Gavin Meador's six digs and six assists.

MATCH MOMENTS:
 
Match 1 (Russell Sage):

• The opening set saw both sides produce its best offense of the match as Russell Sage put down 10 kills (.111) as a team compared to Hobart's nine (.182). A service ace from Farren and a kill from Fromberg would close out the opening set in favor of the Statesmen 25-21.
• Hobart continued on its momentum into the second set, combining for seven kills (.455) as a team compared to the Gators' seven (-0.1). The Statesmen forced Russell Sage out of system often and into several hitting errors, handing Hobart a dominating 25-13 win in set two.
• The Statesmen completed the season-opening sweep with a nine kill (.125) performance in the third set. Once again, the Gators racked up the hitting errors and a kill by first-year Maxwell Stotsky would close out the sweep with a 25-18 win in set three.

Match stats:

• Kemora led Hobart with eight kills (.545) in the sweep. Junior Nate Magni (.071), Fromberg (.071) and sophomore Josh Reilly (.714) chipped in five kills each in the win. Junior Grayson Getz (.500) and Stotsky (.500) added one kill each for the Statesmen.
• Farren led the Statesmen from the setter position, tallying 15 assists, three digs, one block and one service ace in the win. Dugan came off the bench and added five assists, two digs, two service aces and a block.
• Hobart combined for 19 digs as a team and were led by Farren, Kemora, Meador and first-year Ben Welsh with three digs each. Dugan and Stotsky chipped in two digs each in the sweep.
• The Statesmen impressed from the service line, combining for 12 aces as a team. Kemora led the way with a career-high six aces, while Dugan and Welsh chipped in two aces each. Farren and Fromberg added one service ace each in the win.

Match 2 (Misericordia):

• Misericordia came out swinging in the opening set, putting down nine kills (.174) as a team compared to Hobart's eight (-.077). The Statesmen couldn't find their way around the Cougar block and forced several hitting errors, handing Misericordia the first set 25-21.
• The Cougars continued on their momentum into the second set, putting down 14 kills (.524) in the second frame. Hobart fought back with 13 kills (.300) but kills from Joe Kozak and Jackson Fehnel would close out the second in favor of Misericordia 25-20.
• Hobart responded well in the must-win set, putting down nine kills on zero errors (.474) as a team. The Statesmen applied the pressure from the service line and forced the Cougars to just six kills on eight errors to grab a demanding 25-12 win in set three.
• The Statesmen continued to thrive in set four, combining for 12 kills (.500) as a team and holding the Cougars to a negative hitting percentage (-0.1) for the second straight set. A strong service run from Dugan followed by a big kill from sophomore Alain Malcolm would close out the fourth set on top 25-15, forcing a decisive fifth set.
• Hobart opened the fifth set on a 5-0 scoring run and never looked back. The Statesmen put down six kills (.267) and held the Cougars to zero kills (-0.357) in the final frame as they completed the reverse sweep with a 15-8 win.

Match stats:

• Fromberg led the Statesmen with a career-high 14 kills (.364) in the reverse sweep. DeLong chipped in 12 kills (.320), while Sappia added nine (.292). Sophomore Kian Kischke added six kills (.250) out of the middle for Hobart.
• Farren led Hobart from the setter position, tallying 26 assists and four digs in the win. Dugan came off the bench and added 12 assists, five digs and three service aces for the Statesmen.
• Hobart combined for 27 digs as a team and were led by Kemora and Dugan with five digs each. Farren added four, while Meador and Sappia chipped in three digs each in the win.
• The Statesmen looked sharp from the service line and recorded nine aces in the win. Dugan led the way with three, while Sappia and DeLong chipped in two aces each. Malcolm and Kischke added an ace each in the win.
• The Purple and Orange combined for seven blocks as a team and were led by Kischke with four. Malcolm and Fromberg added three blocks each for the Statesmen.

COACHES CORNER:
 
I am so proud of the complete team wins today," said Head Coach Steve England. "Our first match was good for us to shake the rust off from the off season and get a lot of first year's quality experience. Misericordia is a well-coached program and had us on the ropes. We found our grit and made some key changes to turn the tide in our favor. I am very proud of the team today!"

UP NEXT:
 
Hobart will be back in action tomorrow to conclude action at the 2026 Hobart volleyball tournament. The Statesmen will take on Hartwick at 11 a.m., before closing out the weekend against Buffalo State at 5 p.m.