HAMBURG, N.Y. – The Hilbert College men's volleyball team celebrated Senior Day in style on Saturday afternoon, honoring seniors
Nikolas D'Andrea,
Mehkai Francis, and
Garyson Gaud before earning a straight-set AMCC victory over Carlow University inside the Hafner Recreation Center.
Hilbert (4-18, 2-7 AMCC) used the momentum from the pregame ceremony to fuel a dominant performance, defeating Carlow (0-23, 0-11 AMCC) by scores of 25-21, 25-19, and 25-18 to complete the season sweep in conference play.
D'Andrea's impact went beyond the stat sheet, as he etched his name into the program record book. With back-to-back service aces in the opening set, he became Hilbert's single-season leader in aces and now sits at 64 on the year, a mark he will continue to build on in the final matches of the season.
The Hawks were efficient offensively throughout the match, hitting .218 as a team while totaling 33 kills. Senior
Mehkai Francis led the way with a match-high 15 kills, adding a block to anchor the attack.
Nikolas D'Andrea contributed seven kills, two service aces, and five digs, while
Garyson Gaud added four kills, two blocks, and six digs in a well-rounded effort.
Hilbert controlled the tempo behind strong play from setter
Jacob Sehn, who dished out 22 assists and chipped in a pair of aces. Defensively,
Michael Pozzuto paced the Hawks with 20 digs, helping limit Carlow to a .040 hitting percentage on the day.
The Hawks set the tone early, pulling away late in the opening set behind key kills from Francis to secure a 25-21 win. Hilbert carried that momentum into the second, using a balanced offensive attack and solid serving to take a 2-0 match lead with a 25-19 victory.
In the third, Hilbert closed out the sweep by capitalizing on Carlow errors while continuing to get production from its senior class, sealing the match with a 25-18 win in front of the home crowd.
With the win, the Hawks sent their seniors out on a high note as they move towards their final three matches in the regular season next week.
Hilbert will battle at Houghton University April 1st before returning for their final home stand on the weekend. The Hawks will host Mount Aloysius College Friday, April 3rd and then conclude the regular season the next afternoon against Penn State Altoona.
