Gallery: (1-25-2025) Men's Volleyball vs. Brooklyn
ANNANDALE-ON-HUDSON, N.Y. – The Bard College men's volleyball team defeated the Brooklyn Bulldogs in straight sets before beating Manhattanville in four on Saturday at Stevenson Athletic Center.
In their first match, the Raptors outmatched the Bulldogs in kills 41 to 24, aces 10 to 2, and hitting percentage .292 to .179. Bard found a rhythm on serve in the second and third sets, hitting eight aces to just four service errors.
The Raptors never trailed in the first set but were challenged by Brooklyn. The Raptors needed 18 kills and a .342 hitting percentage to squeak by the Bulldogs 25-22. At 22-22, Coach Tyler Zowaski called a timeout, which settled down the team before an important stretch of points. Ansel Waisler had six kills and an ace to lead all players after one.
The key moment in the second set was a run of five straight points at 4-4 to gain breathing room. Giorgi Chikolov was a standout, with five digs, eight assists and two kills. Again, Waisler added six kills.
In the third set, Brooklyn changed up their lineup, but the Raptors countered well. With Bard leading at 7-6 after a back-and-forth first 13 points, Gideon Jacob had three aces during a 7-0 rampage. The Bulldogs got back in it, trailing by two at 13-15, but the Raptors regained control with a 10-5 run to complete the sweep.
Waisler led the Raptors in kills and aces, with 18 and three, respectively. Digs were spread evenly, as six Raptors had between two and six digs. Sidney Stein had a team-leading six digs, adding nine kills. Pearse Esposito had a team-high 15 assists, while Chikolov had 14. Lincoln Grisso went 4-for-4 on attacks, recorded two blocks, and hit two aces.
Gallery: (1-25-2025) Men's Volleyball vs. Manhattanville
After resting during the Brooklyn/Manhattanville match, Bard came out to play, hitting .294 with 49 kills to 14 errors against a Manhattanville that won in four against Brooklyn. The Raptors also found success serving, hitting 13 aces to the Valiants' four.
Against Manhattanville, Bard jumped ahead early, winning the first set on the back of 12 team kills and two aces. Stein had five of the kills as well as four digs, and Esposito was a key playmaker with seven assists. After being tied up at 15-15, the Raptors won ten of the next thirteen points to pull away.
Waisler had two of the Raptors' six aces and four of the team's nine kills in the second set. The team hit .333 and only hit one attacking error on the way to a ten-point victory. Chikolov, Esposito, Grisso, and Stein all hit aces to put service pressure on the Valiants.
In the third set, the Raptors had their highest kill total, with 13. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough as the Valiants surged ahead with 15. Waisler had five kills, Stein had four, while Grisso had three. Esposito had six assists and Chikolov got five. Stein, Quinn Lewis, and Chikolov each had three digs.
The Raptors closed out the match in the fourth, behind 16 kills, 13 digs, and four blocks. Waisler, Grisso, Chikolov, and Kelleher each were part of a block. Waisler had eight of the 16 kills down the stretch for Bard. At 5-7 down, the Raptors won six of the next seven points to take a three-point lead. Manhattanville was able to get the deficit to one at 19-18, but Bard responded with a 4-1 run. Waisler had the last four Raptor kills as they rode the hot hand.
Waisler had a career-high 20 kills, adding eight digs. Stein set career-highs in kills and aces with 13 and four, respectively. Grisso had a season-high seven kills, three aces and two assists while blocking four shots. Esposito also had a career day with 23 assists, three aces, and three blocks. Chikolov had a season-high seven assists in the victory. Lewis was a big part of the Raptors' defensive success with a season-high eight digs.
Overall, Waisler hit .278 with 5.43 kills per set, while Grisso hit .588 (11 kills in 17 total attacks) with 1.57 kills per set.
The Raptors will travel next Saturday to compete against Ramapo and Eastern at the Roadrunners' campus. First serve is set at 11 a.m. in Mahwah, N.J.
