PROVIDENCE, R.I. – The Southern Vermont College men's volleyball team finished the Johnson & Wales University Tip-off Tournament Saturday, first losing to Lasell College before defeating Community College of Rhode Island.

The Mountaineers were downed 3-0 by Lasell with set scores of 25-15, 25-22, and 25-21. They then regrouped for a 3-1 win over CCRI with game scores of 25-19, 24-26, 25-12, and 25-17.

With the match against CCRI not counting towards the overall season record, Southern Vermont now sits at 1-2 going into Sunday morning's 11 a.m. match at Emmanuel College.

Game 1: Lasell 3, Southern Vermont 0
Playing only six Mountaineers, SVC lost in straight sets to a strong Laser crew, hitting a combined .217 percent as a team. Sophomore middle Joey Dighton (Riverside, Calif.) led the team with 13 kills, committing only three hitting errors on 23 attempts for a .435 hitting percentage. Juniors Scott Fitzgerald (Fort Edward, N.Y.) and Keven Walley (Pico Rivera, Calif.) followed with seven kills apiece with Walley adding nine digs to his line.

Junior libero Florentino Escovedo (Fresno, Calif.) led the team with 11 digs while senior setter Anthony Ayala (Pico Rivera, Calif.) notched 31 assists and five digs on the morning.

Game 2: Southern Vermont 3, CCRI 1
Fitzgerald tabbed a team-high 13 kills in the win while Escovedo and Dighton followed with 11 and 10, respectively. Ayala assisted on 37 of the team's 41 kills, and Walley led the team with 17 digs. Dighton chipped in with 10 digs while adding five block assists. Walley also recorded four service aces in the effort.

Fitzgerald was named to the All-Tournament team for his weekend's performance.

All-Tournament Team

J.J. Bessette – Johnson & Wales – Most Outstanding Player
Jeff Vautrin – Lasell
Scott Fitzgerald – Southern Vermont
Zach Sindoni – Regis
Connor Hinman – Keuka
Brendan Baker - CCRI