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After losing its first two matches of the season, the Lafayette Men’s Volleyball Club has won five of six contests to hold second place in the North Division of the Mid-Atlantic Collegiate Volleyball Conference.
The Leopards are in their third year of competition in the MACVC, boasting a 5-1 conference record this season. In its most recent action, the team defeated both Bucknell and Lehigh as host of a tri-match.
Lafayette dropped the Bison in three straight: 28-26, 25-21, and 25-16. Kyle DeLabar ’05 pounded 16 kills and had six digs, Ryan Van Horn ’04 added 11 kills and eight blocks, Eric Bryant ’04 contributed 34 assists, and Doug Fox ’05 had eight digs.
After dropping the first game to Lehigh, 25-21, the Leopards swept the next three with scores of 27-25, 25-18, and 25-16. DeLabar racked up 16 kills and 12 digs, Fox had ten digs, Van Horn recorded 11 kills, eight digs, and four blocks, and Bryant earned 23 assists. (In the other match, Bucknell defeated Lehigh in three straight games.)
For the season, the Leopards also have defeated Bloomsburg (3-2), Seton Hall (3-0), and Montclair State (3-0), while falling to Lock Haven (0-3), Villanova (0-3), and Rowan (1-3). (Two of the losses are outside the conference and do not count in the division standings.) Matches are played by official United States rules, with a format of best of five games up to 25 points; final margin must be two or more points.
The next action for the Leopards will be a tri-match Saturday against Central Division opponents Lehigh-Carbon Community College and York College. The team also will take on Wilkes University and DeSales University this season, and additional matches may be scheduled.
The league includes four divisions with a total of 36 teams hailing from Central/Eastern Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, and Delaware. The top 16 teams will compete in the league championship tournament Saturday, April 3, at Haverford College.
Lafayette’s roster includes Bryant, setter/defensive specialist; DeLabar, outside hitter; Russ Dinardi ’07, outside hitter; Ryan Evans ’05, setter/outside hitter; Fox, outside hitter; Mike Jims ’04, middle hitter; Aaron Hilber ’07, outside hitter; Kyle Moser ’06, outside hitter; Dan Rosenblum ’06, outside hitter; VanHorn, middle hitter; and Ryan Waite ’05, libero/defensive specialist.
Lebar is co-captain, president, and treasurer; VanHorn is co-captain and vice president; and Waite is public relations manager. Shannon Fisher ’07 serves as manager and statistician.
After finishing 13th in the league championship tournament the past two years, the Leopards have higher expectations this season. The team has rebounded strongly after opening losses to Villanova and Rowan.
“Since then, we have been playing really well and have been getting stronger and playing more as a unit each match,” says Delabar. “I am really excited for the tournament this year. We are playing together better now than we ever have.”
The Leopards didn’t lose any players to graduation and gained new talent, including Jims, a key contributor.
“Mike is a senior who hasn’t played volleyball since high school and heard about the team through a friend,” says Delabar. “He is a great addition, playing in every game so far this year, and is one of the team’s leaders in kills (56) and blocks (31).”
Perhaps the team’s most dominant defensive player, Bryant was a backup setter until switching to main setter midway through the season so the Leopards could take advantage of Evans’ skills as an outside hitter.
“Although this new configuration gives us a stronger attack, it does leave us a little weaker defensively,” LeBar notes. “Eric is really settling in at setter and the rest of the team is stepping up to the challenge.”
“Ryan VanHorn is a very smart and experienced player, who knows the ins and outs of the sport far better than I,” he adds. “He always seems to know where to put the ball so the other team can’t get it. He is also the team’s strongest blocker (34 total) and a leader on the court.
“I’m proud of these boys, and see good things for the remainder of this season.”
Lebar has greatly enjoyed playing volleyball since being introduced to the sport at a competitive level in high school. Many people have little idea about what competitive volleyball is like, he says.
“Volleyball is more than just that game that you played back in gym class and at picnics,” he says. “I like to take it upon myself to try to open people’s minds to what I do and love. I tell them if they’ve never seen real volleyball, then come watch me play. [When they do] that always changes their perception of the game.”