Men's Volleyball Takes a Set from Emmanuel on Senior Day

CHICOPEE, Mass. - The Elms College Men's Volleyball team hosted Emmanuel College for a conference match and their annual Senior Day on Saturday at Picknelly Arena.

BASICS
Score: Elms College 1 (16, 21, 27, 17) | Emmanuel College 3 (25, 25, 25, 25)
Records: Blazers 15-13, 3-4 (GNAC) | Saints 11-13, 4-3 (GNAC)

PRIOR TO THE MATCH

The Elms College Men's Volleyball team honored their two seniors Rafa Artero (Madrid, Spain), David Tompkins (Groton, Conn.), and graduate student Taahir Busaidy (Houston, Texas), and their loved ones prior to the start of the conference matchup.

HOW IT HAPPENED

The first set would begin with Elms scoring the first point, on an error committed by Emmanuel, but the two conference foes would battle early for the lead, with the Blazers seeing junior Nick Uschmann (Agawam, Mass.) record a kill. As the set would continue, the Saints would take control of the set, but the Elms offense would try to defer it by adding points to the scoreboard from four kills by first year Juan Jones (Springfield, Mass.), junior John Bellafronte (Enfield, Conn.), and first year Joe Culhane (Springfield, Mass.), along with a service ace from sophomore Hunter Ladouceur (Wilbraham, Mass.). Unfortunately, Emmanuel would take the opening set 25-16.

The second set would see the Saints would score first, but Uschmann would add two kills, followed by a block by Artero and Culhane, and additional kills from Jones and Bellafronte to tie the set 7-7. Emmanuel would regain the lead soon thereafter, but the Blazers would continue to keep their efforts high, with Culhane recording two kills, a kill by Artero and Bellafronte, and Uschmann adding a service ace and a kill. Then in the final moments of the set, Elms would take a big step forward, following two blocks by Jones and first year David Dzhenzherukha (Agawam, Mass.), along with back-to-back kills from Dzhenzherukha and a Culhane-kill. But the Saints would win the second set, 25-21.

The third set would start with the two conference foes battling for lead, with the Blazers recording kills from Uschmann and Bellafronte, but Emmanuel would take the early advantage. As the set would continue, Elms would slowly gain momentum, with assistance from two kills by Uschmann, a block from Jones, and a kill by Bellafronte to tie the set 7-7. As the Saints looked to take control of the set, Uschmann and Bellafronte would make three kills and a block from Bellafronte and Jones would help bring the Blazers back into the set and continue to battle for the lead. Then as it began to look that Emmanuel would win the set to sweep Elms at home, Dzhenzherukha would begin a late rally with a kill, followed by additional kills from Culhane, Artero, Uschmann, Bellafronte, and Jones, service aces by Ladouceur and Artero, and a Bellafronte-Jones block to win the set for the Blazers, 27-25.

The fourth and final set began with the Saints scoring three-straight points, but the Elms offense would then see a combined three kills from Uschmann and Artero, along with a block by Artero, to bring the score to 4-3, Emmanuel. Unfortunately, the Saints would continue to keep their lead over the home team, but the Blazers would continue to flip the momentum, with assistance from seven combined kills by Bellafronte, Culhane, Artero, and Jones. However, Emmanuel would defeat Elms 25-17, win the match three sets to one, and gain home court advantage for the Quarterfinals of the 2026 GNAC Tournament.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Bousquet: 27 digs and an assist.

• Dzhenzheruka: 23 assists, three kills, two block assists, and two digs.

• Uschmann 11 kills, ten digs, a service ace, a block assist, and an assist.

• Ladouceur: ten assists, four digs, and two service aces.

• Bellafronte: nine kills, six digs, two block assists, and an assist.

• Jones: seven kills and five blocks.

• Artero: six kills, three blocks, two digs, and a service ace.

• Culhane: six kills, four digs, and a block assist.

• Centeno Pagan: a dig.

• Sánchez: a dig.

UP NEXT: The Elms Men's Volleyball team will travel to Boston, Mass. to play Emmanuel College for the Quarterfinals of the 2026 GNAC Men's Volleyball Tournament on Tuesday, April 7th at 7 pm.

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