Men’s Volleyball Heads to Elms for NECC Semifinal Showdown Thursday

QUINCY, Mass.- The Eastern Nazarene College men's volleyball team will be making its second-consecutive appearance in the New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) Tournament Thursday as it travels to Elms in the semifinal round.

BASICS:
Date/Time: 04/12/18 | 7:00 pm
Location: Chicopee, Mass.

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HOW THEY GOT HERE:
Eastern Nazarene earned the No. 3 seed in the NECC Tournament after posting a 7-5 record in league action this season. Elms grabbed the No. 2 seed with a 10-2 mark in conference play. The Lions enter the postseason with a 14-11 overall record while the Blazers are 18-6 on the year.

SERIES HISTORY:
The Lions and Blazers have squared off four times in the past two years with Elms winning all four matches.

NECC TOURNAMENT HISTORY:
Eastern Nazarene qualified for the NECC Tournament for the second year in a row and advanced to the NECC semifinals for the first time in program history. The Lions were eliminated in the quarterfinals last season.

SORENSEN AMONG NATIONAL LEADERS:
Senior Kenny Sorensen (Quincy, Mass.) currently ranks first in NCAA Division III with 11.81 attacks per set while also ranking third nationally with 4.31 kills per set. Earlier this season, Sorensen became the first player in program history to earn AVCA National Player of the Week honors. He has also been tabbed NECC Player of the Week three times this season.

NECC STATS LEADERS:
Senior Matthew Tyree (Lansdale, Pa.) paces the conference with 712 assists on the year while Sorensen has collected a league-high 227 digs on the season.

ACES HIGH:
Sorensen leads the team with 32 service aces while Andrew Jayne (Quincy, Mass.) has posted 29 aces and James Hoopes (Lenexa, Kan.) has dealt 23.

BLOCK PARTY:
Rookie Tim Eddings (Endicott, N.Y.) has recorded a team-best 35 total blocks, including seven solo rejections. Junior Brandon Jenkins (Norton, Mass.) ranks second on the team with 20 total blocks.