Owings Mills, Md. – Six Mustangs recorded blocks as the Stevenson men's volleyball team (8-6) defeated No. 5 Rutgers-Newark (11-2) 3-0 Friday night at Owings Mills Gymnasium. Set scores were 25-18, 25-23 and 25-22

The Mustangs were off the races from the start of the first set and never trailed in the frame. A block assist from Aidan O'Brien and Tim Flanagan gave the Mustangs an early boost of momentum. Back-to-back kills from Tanner Stauffer and Aleks Melbardis gave Stevenson some separation from the fifth-ranked Scarlet Raiders at the 17-12 mark in the first set. 

Melbardis added another kill to set the pace at 20-13. The two sides traded points before Melbardis put away a kill to give the opening frame to the Mustangs with a set score of 25-18.

Stevenson fell to an early 13-9 deficit to Rutgers-Newark but kept the Scarlet Raiders within shouting distance to open the second set which saw two tie scores and one lead change. 

The Mustangs roared back to take a 16-13 advantage with a seven-point rally on the backs of block assists from Flannagan, Elliot De La Torre, O'Brien and Melbardis The point streak was rounded out with back-to-back kills from Flanagan. 

The Scarlet Raiders would battle back, chipping away at the Mustang lead to tie the frame at 23-23. However, a service error would give the Mustangs the edge followed by another Flanagan kill to seal the set for Stevenson at 25-23.

The third set was the most tightly contested of the frames played with 15 tie scores and six lead changes. The two sides traded rallies through the early stages of the first set before Stevenson garnered a 14-11 advantage with a block assist from De La Torre and Flannagan, along with a Stauffer service ace. 

Rutgers-Newark responded with a three-point streak to notch the set at 15 points apiece but another Mustang block assist from O'Brien and Justin Novoa gave the lead back to Stevenson. However, another three-point streak from the Scarlet Raiders would give the lead back to the visitors at 18-17 

Flanagan picked up his lone solo block of the match to tie the frame before a kill from Stauffer returned the lead to the Mustangs. Rutgers-Newark would not allow the Mustangs to separate, responding to every Stevenson advantage to the 22-22 mark.  

A late-stage service error gave Stevenson the edge before O'Brien and Melbardis blocked the Scarlet Raider attack. The final point of the set was earned on a Melbardis kill, giving the frame and match to the Mustangs.

Numbers and Notes

• The Mustangs recorded 18 block assists, the most this season against an AVCA ranked opponent.
• Elliot De La Torre led the match with a .444 hit percentage.
• Tanner Stauffer picked up 11 kills, his second-most this season in a three-set match. (12 vs #7 Southern Va.)
• Justin Novoa added 26 assists to bring his season tally to 307 for an 8.08 assist per set average.

What's Next

The Mustangs remain home to open MAC Commonwealth play against Widener Saturday, February 26 at 1:00 p.m.