Men’s Volleyball Shines in Spring Season Opening Tournament

The Stonehill Men’s Volleyball team kicked off their spring season at the Marty Open tournament in Fairfield, Connecticut.  The friendly tournament featured a four game, round-robin format.  In their opener, Stonehill got off to a stellar start, winning the first match in two games, by scores of 25-23 and 25-15 over the University of Hartford. Freshman Jen McBrine and Sophomore Maggie Ross settled in well and led the team's offense throughout.  In the second game, Stonehill went up against Bowdoin College, whose largely upperclassmen lineup proved to be too much for Hill as they fell, 25-18 and 25-16.
            Looking to get back on track in the third game, Stonehill played possibly their best match of the day against RWU. Helping his team come back from behind in the first game, Senior Anthony Toppi was phenomenal off the bench, with key kills to lead his team to a 25-22 win. Stonehill lost the second game of the match narrowly by a score of 25-23, and settled for a draw.  In the last match, Hill were knocked off by a stoudt URI team 25-12, 25-19 to cap off a 1-2-1 first tournament.  Senior Captain Derek Marchand was solid in the back row, setting up the attacking line with several great digs.
            Freshman Alex Gasdia was awarded the all-around team MVP for Stonehill, leading the team as opposite hitter.