WILKES-BARRE – The Wilkes University Colonels hosted the New Jersey City Gothic Knights in a match on Friday night at the Marts Center.
 
The Colonels (8-10) hung around with the Gothic Knights (8-4) but failed to push past them as they fell 3-0 (25-16, 25-20, 25-14).
 
The Colonels led 7-6 in the first set before the Gothic Knights broke the set wide open with a 11-2 run to take a 17-9 lead to effectively clinch the opening round for New Jersey City.   The Gothic Knights would carry their momentum into set two with a 5-1 run, but the Colonels battled back to a tie with a 6-2 run of their own fueled by a pair of kills from Paul Binner (Tunkhannock, PA/Tunkhannock).  New Jersey City tacked on two to make it 11-9, but the Colonels would keep on their heels with a 2-0 response.  A 5-2 Gothic Knight run would put them ahead by three before the teams exchanged 3-0 runs to leave the second set 19-18 in New Jersey City's favor.
 
The Gothic Knights would close out the Colonels with a 6-2 run, a pair of kills from Leo Ferrari sealing the set.   The third set would play out similarly to the first, with a 5-2 run with a pair of service aces from Lucas Mages (Buffalo, NY/Iroquois Central) giving the Colonels a 7-6 edge.  A 4-1 Gothic Knight run would find them back in the lead at 10-8, but the Navy and Gold battled back to a tie with a 3-1 run to come back to an 11 all score.  The Gothic Knights would catch fire to clinch the set and sweep, going on a 14-3 tear with 11 kills to put the Colonels away.
 
The Knights hit .385 on the night compared to the Colonels .090, and had 47 kills to the Navy and Gold's 23.  Ethan Speicher (Midlothian, VA/Cosby) led the Colonels with four blocks, while Mages tied his season and career high with three service aces.    The trio of Brandon DaSilva, Jonathan Andrews, and James Bajor combined for 34 of the 47 kills for the Gothic Knights, while Ferrari finished with 33 assists and a trio of service aces.
 
The Colonels will continue their 2022 season with a tri-match on Saturday against Arcadia and No. 12 Juniata.  The Colonels have never defeated Arcadia in program history, while this is the first time they'll meet Juniata in men's volleyball.