(Riverdale, NY) - During an interview for the Mount Saint Vincent Men's Volleyball 2007 team preview, Head Coach Tom Callahan expressed excitement about how much the Dolphins have improved from one year to the next. On Wednesday night, in front of one of the largest and loudest crowds to ever see a Mount Saint Vincent volleyball match, Callahan and company showed the NECVA volleyball world exactly what he meant. And while the result was a 3-1 loss to CUNY powerhouse Hunter College, the match was a toe-to-toe battle that saw Hunter barely survive an upstart Mount Saint Vincent effort. Hunter College was a win away from the CUNY Championship a year ago and advanced to the NECVA Championship Tournament. They also breezed past the Mount in three easy games on Jan. 19, 2006. With most of their roster back, they are expected to challenge for the conference crown once again this season. But on Wednesday night, Mount Saint Vincent was almost every bit as good.

Sophomore T.J. Pufahl (Bethpage, NY/Bethpage HS) registered 11 kills, eight digs, and 3.5 solo blocks, and senior Dan Williams (Brick Township, NJ/St. Rose) had seven kills, an incredible 19 digs, and 6.5 total blocks as Mount Saint Vincent was in all but one game right to the end. The Dolphins dropped an opening game that went neck-and-neck, 30-25, and rallied to win the second game, 30-22. A 30-16 loss in game three seemingly put the Hawks (1-0) ahead for good, but the fourth game proved to be a thriller. After going back-and-fourth, Hunter pulled ahead for a 29-26 lead and the match appeared to be all but over. However, one final Dolphin run saw the Mount tie the game at 29, take a 31-30 lead and serve for the game, but ultimately lose the final game of the match, 35-33. Despite the loss, the Dolphins proved that they are significantly better than a year ago, and ready to compete in a very difficult NECVA Metro division.

The Mount's improvement was evident by one of their finest hitting nights in several years as Mount Saint Vincent registered 35 total kills while making only 24 attacking errors. Pufahl had a huge night, and Williams and Arnold Ross (Wilton, ME/Mount Blue HS) also were offensive forces for the Dolphins. However, Hunter, and CUNY Player of the Year candidate Lukas Lyszak (Tychy, Poland/Leon Kruczkowski) had too much firepower up front. Luszak registered a match-high 16 kills, while Shandu Foster (Long Island City, NY/American Studies) had seven kills and five solo blocks. The Hawks were also paced by freshman setter Josh Zolecki (Channahon, IL/Minooka HS), who had a match-high 39 assists.

Mount Saint Vincent returns to action on Saturday, Jan. 20 when they travel to NECVA Metro powerhouse Stevens for an 11:00 a.m. match. The Ducks are currently ranked #4 in the nation by the AVCA.