DALLAS, Pa. – Randolph-Macon Men's Volleyball opened its second season with a win against Sage in the Cougar Kick-Off Classic hosted by Misericordia University. The Yellow Jackets also fell in the nightcap to Lasell.

Randolph-Macon 3, Sage 0 (25-19, 25-16, 25-18)

The Yellow Jackets' first contest was a sweep of the Gators.

R-MC hit .304 for the first set, helping pace the Yellow Jackets through the rest of the match. Out of a 5-5 tie, R-MC racked up five of the next seven and prevented Sage from getting close over the next series of points. R-MC took a 17-11 lead and did face two 3-0 runs by Sage, but finished the set off with a 4-0 run itself to win 25-19.

In the second set, Sage took an early lead, but R-MC was able to wipe it off the board with five straight. It was part of an overall 10-2 run for R-MC. The closest R-MC would allow Sage to get was two the rest of the set, but right after the Gators within striking distance, R-MC fired off the final ten of 13 points to win the set 25-17.

Again R-MC had an early run in the third set. The Yellow Jackets took a quick 9-3 lead, which included two service aces from senior Brian Stephen (Mechanicsville, Va. / Hanover). Sage put together a run of four and 4-1, but R-MC matched that with a 4-0 and 5-0 run of its own, never leaving its lead in doubt and gaining the 25-18 victory.

Senior Lee Olenyik (Mechanicsville, Va. / Hanover) made 11 kills and hit .471 for the set. He was followed by freshman Kolby Gibson (Bumpass, Va. / Louisa) who made seven kills on 16 attempts. Freshman Jarrett Carrano (Beaverdam, Va. / Patrick Henry) earned 16 assists and sophomore Lenny Sampson, Jr. (Chesapeake, Va. / Indian River) made two blocks. Carrano led the team defensively as well with seven digs.

Lasell 3, Randolph-Macon 2 (25-22, 23-25, 21-25, 25-22, 15-7)

After trading points over many of the opening moments of the match, R-MC was able to take a 9-5 lead. But Lasell was able to make a five-point swing to take a lead of its own. The teams traded points for much of the final points of the set, but Lasell was able to get three of the last four to win 25-22.

The Yellow Jackets had the early momentum in the second frame though. R-MC got ahead 7-3 early, but Lasell was able to respond fighting to a 13-13 tie. The teams would tie again at 15-15 and 21-21, but it was R-MC's turn to get three of the final four and won the set 25-23.

After close play in the third set, Lasell was able to get a five-point lead to 13-7. The Yellow Jackets used a 6-2 run to close the gap to just one through the middle stages of the set. But R-MC then ripped off nine of the final 11 points to win the set 25-21.

Lasell was not going to go quietly though. The Lasers got out in front 9-2 early in the fourth set. But R-MC stormed back with an 8-2 run and tied the set at 17-17. After ties at 19-19 and 20-20, Lasell scored six of the last eight to win 25-22.

Lasell earned a quick lead in the deciding set, getting out in front 4-1. R-MC earned two points, but Lasell never really let up as the Yellow Jackets couldn't string together a run and the Lasers earned the 15-7 victory.

The Yellow Jackets had a terrific day hitting, posting a .243 attack percentage. Carrano made 43 assists, which neared Stephen's program record of 45 last year.

Olenyik and Gibson again led the squad with 15 and 14 kills respectively.

Freshman Sean Cunningham led the team at the net with three blocks. Carrano and Olenyik each added two.

Carrano also led the team with 14 digs while Gibson and freshman Daniel Nguyen (Glen Allen, Va. / Glen Allen) threw in nine.

Up Next

Randolph-Macon continues at the Classic tomorrow against St. Joseph's (Long Island) as well as host Misericordia. The matches are at 1:00 PM and 3:00 PM respectively.