SPRINGFIELD, MASS. – The Merrimack College men's volleyball team rattled off its fourth straight victory on Friday night against American International. Zyshonne Lang once again led the Warriors with 16 kills. Logan Whitaker ranked second on the team in kills with 12. Miles Dewhirst was the third Merrimack player in double figure kills with 11.

The Basics
Score: Merrimack: 3 American International 1
Records: Merrimack (4-3) | American International (1-8)
Location: Henry Butova Gymnasium

Rapid Recap

• In the first set the Yellow Jackets jumped out quickly to a 8-3 lead. Xander Thesz had a kill to cut the lead down to four. The Warriors battled back getting down to three points after a Carson Bashford ace. The lead was down to two after three straight points from the Warriors that included a Whitaker kill. After a run by American International, Lang and Whitaker combined for two kills to make the deficit three. After back and forth play, the Yellow Jackets would end up taking the first set by five.
• Merrimack jumped out to a 4-2 lead in the second set. American International came back to take the lead by one. Whitaker and Lang then scored two points for the Warriors to give them back the lead. Later on in the set the Warriors found themselves up by two. A service error and kills from Whitaker and Thesz increased the lead to five. Merrimack would go on a four-point run towards the end of the set and ended up winning by seven.
• Down one, early in the third set, Lang and Whitaker had back-to-back kills to give the Warriors the lead. Bashford would have a kill later on in the set to send Merrimack up three. The Yellow Jackets would come back to tie the set at eight. Down three later on in the set, the Warriors added three points to tie the set at 14. Both teams went back and forth for a number of points. Thesz had a kill to tie the set at 19. Merrimack would then score five points in a row to jump out to a four-point lead. The Yellow Jackets would score once, but it was not enough for the Warriors who would win by four.
• With momentum on their side, Merrimack seven of the first 10 points in the fourth set to go up four. American International would battle back cutting the lead to one. After losing the lead by one, a service error and ace from Dewhirst gave the Warriors back the lead. Both teams then traded points for a bit. Merrimack would then rattle off three points in a row to go up three. The Yellow Jackets would come back to cut the lead down to one, 22-21. Matthew Motes had a kill to put the Warriors up two. American International then added two points to tie the set at 23. Whitaker had back-to-back kills to give Merrimack the win in set four and the match.

Top Performers // Notes

• Kyle Standage finished with 13 digs.
• Bashford had 47 assists.
• The Warriors won the kill battle 54-37.

Up Next
Merrimack gets back to action on Saturday night against Fisher College. The match is set for 7 p.m.