DUDLEY, Mass. –  Russell Sage College opened New England Collegiate Conference play this afternoon at Nichols.

The Bison hit .418 as a team to pick up the home sweep (25-10, 25-15, 25-21).

Senior opposite Elijah Tortorici (Clifton Park, NY/Mohonasen) topped the Gators with seven kills, while setter Ryan Jennings (North Brunswick, NJ/North Brunswick Township), a graduate student, the reigning NECC Player of the Week, registered 12 assists and three aces.

Junior right side Tanner Soracco paced Nichols (13-5/2-0 NECC) with 14 kills on .632 hitting.

As part of the Saturday afternoon tri-match, the Gators also faced Emerson.

The Lions (7-9) received four or more kills from six different players to sweep the neutral site contest (25-21, 25-10, 25-20).

Tortorici led the Gators with six kills, while sophomore setter/outside hitter Jack McWilliam (Fishkill, NY/Arlington) added five kills and eight digs.

RSC (4-18/0-1 NECC) continues its opening weekend of conference play tomorrow at Endicott.

Notes: The Gators are in their second spring with Reid Hartl at the helm…He guided RSC to a spot in the New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) Championship Tournament in his debut campaign…Seven players returned from the squad…The Gators were picked to finish seventh in the conference by the member coaches…Setter Ryan Jennings (North Brunswick, NJ/North Brunswick Township), a graduate student, and middle hitter Andrew Samson (Queens, NY/Pathways), both graduate students, were voted co-captains…Jennings began the season with 2,157 career assists, second-most by a Gator…Kyle Ray '13 holds the program record with 2,910 career assists…Four newcomers, two from New York, one from Colorado, and another from Texas, joined the program in 2023…RSC swept the NECC weekly awards for the period ending Sunday, March 5…Jennings was selected the Player of the Week, while freshman outside hitter Alexander Bergman (Kremmling, CO/West Grand) garnered Rookie of the Week accolades. 

Save the Date: The 18th Annual Gator Golf Classic will be held on Friday, June 2 at Colonie Golf and Country Club.

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