Riverdale, N.Y. – Under the direction of new head coach Patrick Dietz, the College of Mount Saint Vincent Men's Volleyball team will start the 2013 campaign on Saturday afternoon in Jersey City, N.J. The Dolphins will take on league rivals New Jersey City University and NYU-POLY starting at 12:00 p.m.
Mount Saint Vincent returns three players from last season's team, including Second Team All-Skyline Conference selection
Timothy Kolodny. In his first season with the Mount, Kolodny led the team with 241 digs, a 2.77 average per set, to go along with 29 kills and 14 service aces.
Sophomore
Brett Holiday (Stratford, N.J.) returns as the team's leader in kills after posting 150 as a freshman. Holiday registered at least 10 kills in a match five times as a freshman, including a season-high 12 against Yeshiva on March 4. Holiday also led the Dolphins in total blocks with 50 a season ago.
Also back from the 2012 team is sophomore
James DiGiovanni (Bay Shore, N.Y.). As freshman DiGiovanni posted 65 kills, 42 assists and 23 total blocks after appearing in only 16 matches for the Dolphins.
Mount Saint Vincent will look to fill voids left by graduating seniors
Chris Bacchi,
Michael Sin and
Joe Ecock in 2013. Bacchi was a Second Team All-League pick in 2012 after leading the Dolphins with 277 kills and 30 assists. Ecock was second in kills a season ago with 258 and equaled the team-high with 30 service aces.
Sin was the Mount's primary setter in 2012 and handed out 767 helpers, averaging 8.62 per set. Sin rounded out the season third on the team with 23 aces and also accounted for 27 kills and 128 digs.
Dietz and the Dolphins will also welcome four freshmen to the fold in 2013 in
Juan Cabrera (Yorktown Heights, N.Y.), Tyler Eagan (Laurel Springs, N.J.),
Cedric Ellison (Worchester, Mass.) and
Dylan Lolli (Sicklerville, N.J.). Also joining the squad this season and looking to make immediate impacts are junior
Vin Calasso (Lindenhurst, N.Y.) and sophomores
Raphael Castillo (Bronx, N.Y.),
Kristopher Jones (Staten Island, N.Y.) and
Reginald Owens (Staten Island, N.Y.).
After opening the season on Saturday with a pair of league contests, the Dolphins will open the home schedule on February 7 when they play host to Ramapo. After that the Dolphins will hit the road to take on league rivals Yeshiva, Purchase and Sage before taking part in the Bard Tournament on February 22-23.
The Dolphins will look to build on a 2012 season that saw them finish with an 11-16 overall record and a 4-10 mark in Skyline Conference play.
