New York, New York - The BMCC men's volleyball team fell to NJCAA National runner-up Monroe College (New Rochelle) in three sets (15-25, 14-25, 21-25) on Wednesday night in Region 15 action at BMCC Gymnasium. The Panthers dropped to 2-4 (2-2 Region XV) with the loss, while the Mustangs improved to 18-4 (5-0 Region XV) with the victory.
Freshman Chong Lin Li led the Panther attack with a game-high tied eight kills while classmate Hugo Paz (Mexico City, Mexico) dished out a team-high 22 assists. Fellow underclassmen Emmanuel Lovingood (Queens, New York) registered a team-high two service aces.
Freshman Jonathan Duarte (Bogota, Columbia) led BMCC on defense with a game-high eight digs and uncorked seven kills in the match, while classmate Isah Mohammed recorded a game-high three solo blocks in the match.
Monroe College jumped out to a 10-3 lead in the opening set, but after a Duarte kill, the lead was cut to six, 10-4, before the Mustangs went on a 5-0 run to make it 15-4. Lovingood's service ace helped BMCC cut the deficit back down to six, 20-14 before the Mustangs scored five of the final six points to win the first set 25-15.
The Panthers got off to a strong start in the second set, scoring four of the first six points to lead 4-2 on a Mohammed solo block. The Mustangs used an 8-2 run to get the lead to 10-6 and got the advantage to as large as seven, 17-10, before BMCC made one final push. The Panthers scored three of the following four points to get within five, 18-13, on a Lovingood service ace, but the Mustangs would close the door with seven of the final eight points to take to games to none advantage with a 25-14 victory in set number two.
The Panthers had their best set of the match in the third frame, registering 13 kills. After both squads combined for the first 10 points of the final set, the Panthers registered five of the following seven points to grab a 10-7 lead on the Mustangs on a Lin Li service ace. Monroe responded with a 7-3 run to get the lead back 14-13, then BMCC scored the following two points to go back in front 15-14 on a Lin Li kill. The Mustangs scored three of the following four points to get a 17-16 lead.
The Panthers responded with three of the next five points to knot it up at 19 on an Edwin Martinez (Bronx, New York) kill. Monroe would take control of the set and be able to roll off six of the final eight points to win the match with a 25-21 victory in the third set.
The Mustangs were led on offense by Joe Kieler, who unloaded a game-best, tied eight kills and three service aces, which were also game-highs. Timothy Reyes distributed a game-best 32 assists. Arnau Riu Giralt led the Mustangs with six digs in the contest.
The Panthers head on the road in Region 15 action, looking to split with Nassau Community College on Saturday, March 16, at 1 p.m. in Garden City, New York. For more information, visit the BMCC Men's Volleyball Schedule Page.
ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT BOROUGH OF MANHATTAN COMMUNITY COLLEGE
The athletic program at Borough of Manhattan Community College encompasses a total of 13 varsity teams competing at the NJCAA Division III level. For the latest news on the Panthers, please visit us a https://bmccathletics.com - the official site of BMCC Athletics. Also, become a follower of the Panthers on Instagram (@bmcc_athletics) and Twitter (@BMCCAthletics), and "LIKE" Us on Facebook (BMCC Athletics).
