Boston, MA – The men's volleyball team took on Wentworth Institute of Technology on Saturday evening in the first round of the NCAA Division III Men's Volleyball Tournament.  After dropping a close first set battle, the Hawks were unable to bounce back and made an early tournament exit after falling in straight sets, 25-21, 25-17, 25-12. Hunter puts a cap on the 2016 season with a 24-10 overall record.
 
Both Ben Cassidy and Benjamin Crusinberry had an equal share of their combined 14 kills while Steven Tarquinio added six of his own. Nicolas Sanchez recorded 18 assists in the loss while Joseph Muir recorded a game high 15 digs.
 
The Purple and Gold jumped out to a 7-2 early first set lead with help from Wentworth's four errors. However, the Leopards put in an offensive surge, winning the next eight out of 10 points to give them a 10-9 lead. This would be the second of six times each team traded the lead. A Tarquinio kill followed up by a Leopard attack error gave Hunter the 17-16 lead which would wind up being their final lead of the match. A crippling 6-0 run by the hosts turned the tables late in the game at 22-18. Despite pulling to within three, Wentworth took the first set on a final Jake Reed kill to make it a 1-0 affair.
 
In the second, the Hawks remained within two points of their counterparts through the early stages of the set. Two straight kills from Hogan brought his team to within one at 7-6, but seven of the next eight points were claimed by Wentworth, setting the Purple and Gold back 14-7. Unable to generate momentum, the gap widened to as much as nine in the latter stages of the set. A kill from Ollie Oshman closed the curtain on the second stage with Wentworth enjoying a 2-0 set lead.
 
It was all the Leopards in the third and final set as they took the first point lead and never looked back. With the scoreboard reading 11-3 favoring the hosts, Hunter slipped into a 12 point deficit at one point in the match and when all was said and done, suffered a 25-12 third set loss and putting a cap on their season in the process.