Box Score AMHERST, N.Y.  — Sacred Heart University men's volleyball was on the road against NEC top seed Daemen University Friday night, losing 3-1.


The Wildcats took the first set 25-18 thanks to their 18 kills and .500 hitting percentage. Multiple kills from Mark Berry, Ife Loverton and Carlos Santa Cruz helped the Pioneers keep it close in the openening set.

SHU would take the second set 26-24 thanks to a kill and service ace by Patrick Mucherino to close it out after going neck and neck with the Wildcats all set. The Pioneers would get 15 kills on 33 attack attempts while recording two service aces in the set. Tyler Kwinta would record ten assists to help lead the charge and even out the match.

The Pioneers would drop the third set 25-12 and would trail by double digits from the 17-7 mark. Kills from Berry, Kwinta, Santa Cruz and Carter Lyons would halve the lead at 24-12 but wouldn't be enough to combat a .107 hitting percentage and nine combined errors on the set. SHU was unable to capitalize on points, getting only nine kills on 28 attack attempts.

Daemen would get the best of Sacred Heart in the fourth set, ending the match in a 25-14 victory. Kills from Loverton and Berry mixed in with several Wildcat errors would help the Pioneers keep it close at 14-10 before Daemen would score seven of the next twelve points to make it 21-15. The Pioneers would cut it to 24-22 but bad sets and more errors would be the downfall on the evening.


Records:
Sacred Heart 8-12 (4-7 NEC)
Daemen 16-4 (10-1 NEC)

Top Performers:
Ife Loverton 13 kills, 3 blocks, 16 points
Mark Berry 13 kills, 13 points
Tyler Kwinta 25 assists, 1 service ace
Patrick Mucherino 8 kills, 2 blocks, 10 points, 1 service ace

Up Next:
The Pioneers will go to Buffalo, N.Y. to play D'Youville University on Saturday at 4 p.m.