Martinez Hands Out 1,000th Assist, But Men's Volleyball Swept by Sage and #11 Kean

ALBANY, N.Y. — Senior Norrin Martinez (Maspeth, N.Y./Holy Cross) took over the program record for most matches played and became the second Bear to join the 1,000-assist club as the St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) men's volleyball team opened their final weekend of the season succumbing to a pair of sweeps to The Sage Colleges and No. 11 Kean University on Saturday afternoon in Albany, N.Y.

The Basics

• Final Score vs. Sage: Sage 3, St. Joseph's 0
• Set Scores: 25-6, 25-14, 25-14
• Final Score vs. #11 Kean: Kean 3, St. Joseph's 0
• Set Scores: 25-11, 25-12, 25-7
• Records: Kean (27-6, 15-0 Skyline) Sage (14-18, 11-4 Skyline), St. Joseph's (5-16, 2-13 Sykline)
• Date: April 2, 2016
• Location: Albany, N.Y.
• Arena: Kahl Gymnasium

How it Happened vs. Sage

• Sage raced out to a 13-1 lead in the first set, including a string of 10 consecutive points. The Bears never recovered, recording just six points in the set as Sage slammed 11 kills.
• Clyde Delacruz's kill brought St. Joseph's within 9-7 in a more competitive second set. But the Gators unleashed a 7-0 run, including four kills and one ace, to distance themselves. They coasted to a 25-14 victory and 2-0 match advantage.
• The Bears were competitive early in the third as well. Delacruz's kill and an ensuing error brough St. Joseph's even at 6-all. But another Sage rally set the tone as they notched 12 of the next 13 points to set up another 25-14 win and the sweep.

How it Happened vs. Kean

• Kean powered 14 kills and six of the final seven points in a 25-11 opening set triumph.
• The Bears led 5-4 early in the second helped by kills from Clyde Delacruz, Thomas Kennedy and Alec Smalley. But the Cougars unleashed a 6-1 run to regain the lead for good. Four consecutive kills to end the set highlighted a 25-12 win.
• Kean was dominant in a 25-7 third set victory to clinch the sweep. St. Joseph's managed just two kills in the set, while the Cougars pounded 13.

For the Bears

• Clyde Delacruz, Thomas Kennedy and Alec Smalley led the Bear attack with nine kills apiece on the day. Delacruz notched a team-high six in game one, while Smalley led the team with five in game two. Smalley also led St. Joseph's with six digs on the day, three in each contest.
• Norrin Martinez set up 26 assists, leading the team with 14 in game one and 12 in the capper.

For the Gators vs. the Bears

• Ryan Guyton led Sage with nine kills as eight Gators recorded at least one kill. Guyton added five digs and a match-high four service aces.
• Casey Fitzpatrick slammed seven kills and dug out a team-high six to anchor the defense.
• Bailey Cecchi added six kills, five digs and three aces.
• Anthony Gerace set up the winning offense with a match-best 31 assists.

For the Cougars vs. the Bears

• Jacob Kauffman and Jared Warner led the match with nine kills apiece as nine Cougars recorded at least one kill.
• Kevin Barrow helped orchestrate the sweep with 21 assists, while Steve Schrank added 11.
• Nico Mercadante and Nicholas Buseki added six and five kills respectively to the offense.
• Zach Lynne's five-dig effort led all players.

Inside the Box Score vs. Sage

• St. Joseph's was held to a -.056 hitting percentage, recording 21 errors in 71 attempts.
• The Gators penetrated the Bear defense for 37 kills en route to a .413 striking rate.

Inside the Box Score vs. Kean

• The Bears were held to a season-low 13 kills, finishing with a -.017 hitting rate.
• Kean hit an efficient .532, recording 40 kills and committing just seven errors.
• The Cougars compiled a 13-0 ace advantage.

The Bear Facts

• Norrin Martinez became the second Bear to reach 1000 career assists doing so in 79 games played and only taking on setting duties the last two seasons. With the pair of matches played today, Martinez also becomes the Bears all-time record holder with 80 matches surpassing assistant coach Raul Urshela '15.
• The match against Kean was the first ever against a ranked opponent. The Cougars entered as No. 11 in the country and on a 62-match Skyline winning streak.
• Sage and Kean each complete a two-game season sweep of St. Joseph's.

Next Up for St. Joseph's

The Bears will honor six seniors and conclude their inaugural season in the Skyline Conference welcoming Ramapo College to The Hill Center on Sunday, April 3 at 2 p.m. Live stats and video will be available at SJCears.com.