NEVC CHAMPIONSHIP: Men’s Volleyball Sweeps Nichols To Capture Conference Crown

BEVERLY, Mass. — The first-seeded Endicott men's volleyball team defeated second-seeded Nichols College, 3-0, by scores of 25-20, 25-20, and 25-14 in the New England Volleyball Conference (NEVC) Championship on Sunday afternoon at MacDonald Gymnasium.

Matty Tiernan (Bradford, R.I.) was named the NEVC Tournament Most Outstanding Player, as the junior setter dished out 82 assists on 153 attempts (13.67 per set, .536, 1 error) in two playoff matches. 

The Gulls also hit .372 as a unit in the playoffs (15.50 K/S, 93K-23E-188TA) behind Tiernan's efficient passing.

In today's championship contest, Tiernan compiled a match-high 40 assists (.494), facilitating Endicott's attack to the tune of a .317 hitting percentage (46K-13E-104TA) on the afternoon. 

Tiernan also registered seven digs and tallied one block assist on the defensive end.

Meanwhile, Jake Laborde (Brookline, N.H.) produced a near double-double for the Gulls via a match-high 16 kills (.387) and nine digs.

Aidan Iacovelli (South Windsor, Conn.) also chipped in with 14 kills (.297), while Thomas Matchett (North Smithfield, R.I.) notched eight putaways (.462) and four blocks (1 solo).

Dan Battista (Bethlehem, N.Y.) was nails defensively, tallying a match-high 20 digs in addition to a perfect 19-for-19 showing on serve-receive.

The first set saw the two teams evenly matched until kills from Iacovelli and Laborde (x2) pushed the Gulls' lead to three, forcing a Nichols timeout. Coming out of the timeout, a block by Laborde and Jackson Gray (Glenmont, N.Y.), followed by kills from Gray and Iacovelli, gave Endicott the 25-20 first-set victory.

In the second set, the Blue and Green took an early lead and never looked back, going up 2-0 in the match. In the final set, Endicott saw much of the same with the early lead, and they never relinquished it to secure the conference championship.

Today's match only featured 14 ties (13-1-0) and three lead changes (3-0-0).

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE

• Endicott leads the all-time series, 12-4.
• Ninth conference championship in program history (2013-17, 2019, 2021-22, 2026).
• The Gulls held Nichols to a .071 hitting percentage, the worst mark for the Bison in a conference championship match since 2022 (.027, L, 3-1 vs. Endicott). 
• The seventh match with 40 or more assists for Tiernan.
• Battista's fourth match this season with 20 or more digs.

WHAT'S NEXT

Endicott (22-3) has earned the conference's automatic bid into the NCAA Division III Men's Volleyball Tournament. The field will be announced tomorrow at 10 AM (EST) on NCAA.com.

Nichols sees its 2026 campaign come to a close at 15-15 overall. 

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(Photo Credit - David Le '10)