GENEVA, N.Y. –The Hobart volleyball team concluded its regular season with a 3-0 non-conference loss to No. 1 Springfield this afternoon in Bristol Gymnasium. With the loss, the Statesmen fell to 13-13 overall, while the Pride improve to 21-3 on the season.

The non-conference battle saw both sides put up impressive numbers. Hobart combined for 27 kills (.074) as a team, while Springfield put down 37 (.288). The Statesmen held a 4-1 advantage in service aces, while the Pride held a 12-4 edge in blocks. Springfield also combined for 27 digs compared to Hobart's 26.

Junior Noah DeLong led Hobart with eight kills (.333) in the loss. He added four digs, two aces, one block and one assist for the Statesmen. Classmate Daniel Sappia chipped in six kills (.105), five digs and two blocks against the Pride. Junior Aiden Kemora (-.095) and first-year Harry Fromberg (.067) added five kills each in the setback and combined for five digs, two blocks, two service aces and one assist. Defensively, Hobart was led by junior libero Gavin Meador's six digs.

Springfield was led by Brennan Cutter's eight kills, six blocks and one ace in the sweep. Carter Durivage (.222) and Will Kirchhoff (.455) added seven kills each and combined for five blocks and four digs in the win. Dylan Mulvaney tallied a team-high 29 assists in the win and added six blocks and three kills (.400).

MATCH MOMENTS:

• Springfield came out hot in the opening set, putting down 13 kills (.400) while holding Hobart to a match-low seven kills (.048). Kemora led the Statesmen with three kills in the opening set but the Pride's block stepped up big as they tallied four blocks to take a 25-18 win in set one.
• The two sides traded the early points in set two as Hobart gained momentum thanks to back-to-back service aces from DeLong. Springfield fought back with a scoring run of their own to take back the momentum of the match. Once again, the Pride's block was too much for the Statesmen to handle as it forced Hobart into a -.032 hitting percentage, handing Springfield a 25-19 win in set two.
• Hobart battled back in the third, putting down a match-high 12 kills (.207) in the must-win set. Springfield responded with 15 kills (.290) of their own but a late surge from the Statesmen would force the set to extra points. A big kill from Mulvaney followed by a block from Springfield would close out the non-conference battle in favor of the Pride, 26-24.

MATCH STATS:

• DeLong led the Statesmen with eight kills (.333), while Sappia chipped in six (.105) in the loss. Kemora (-.095) and Fromberg (.067) added five kills each, while sophomore Alain Malcolm chipped in two kills (.167) out of the middle.
• Junior Zack Farren and first-year Tor Boughal led Hobart from the setter position, tallying 13 and eight assists each, respectively. The duo also combined for five digs in the loss.
• The Statesmen combined for 26 digs as a team and were led by Meador with six. Sappia added five, while DeLong chipped in four digs in the loss. Farren and Kemora recorded three digs, while Boughal and Fromberg added two each.
• The Purple and Orange tallied four service aces in the loss and were led by Fromberg and DeLong with two aces each.

UP NEXT:
 
Hobart will be back in action Friday, April 10, when it travels to New Paltz, New York, for the first round of the UVC Championships. The fourth-seeded Statesmen are set to take on fifth-seeded Vassar at 5 p.m. at Hawk Center. The winner will advance to take on top-seeded New Paltz in the semifinals on Saturday at 2:30 p.m.