The Emerson College men’s volleyball team and Emmanuel College Saints had been here before.

Nearly two years to the day that the Lions stunned the Saints in the 2023 GNAC Quarterfinals, both teams met again—in the exact same round and on the exact same court. The only difference was the seeding: Instead of a 5-vs.-4 matchup, the Lions were sixth and the Saints were third.

History would not repeat itself Tuesday night, however, as the Lions were swept by the Saints in a match that went down to the wire.

Consecutive Emerson attack errors got the Saints on the board, but a Saints service error gave the Lions their first point of the opening set. Junior outside hitter Chase Fagen’s ace tied the set at two before a Saints spike put the home team up 3-2. Both sides traded kills for a 4-4 tie, but the Saints soon separated themselves with kills and Emerson errors, a 5-0 run giving them a 22-15 lead. A Saints service error and a swat by first-year middle blocker Cash Muse brought the deficit down to five, but a block and kill won them the first set, 25-18.

The Lions got off to a hot start in the second set, leading 5-0 after an ace by senior setter Bryson Beck. The Saints quickly got on the board with three straight points. The Lions maintained a slim advantage, leading 6-4 after a kill by sophomore right side hitter Riley Goldman. The set was another game of runs, as the Lions tied things up at 12 off of an ace by junior middle blocker Liam Higgins. The Saints scored three more points before a Fagen spike killed their momentum. The Lions’ attacks did little to deter the Saints, who built a 21-16 advantage late in the period.

Emmanuel errors brought the Lions back in, though they still trailed 23-20. After a Saint service error and kill, a forceful attack gave Emmanuel set No. 2, 25-21.

The third set was an intense back-and-forth, with neither team leading by more than three points. A three-peat of Lions blocks put them up 11-9 before the Saints stormed back again. After two attack attempts, the third kill by junior outside hitter Theo Hackett made it a 13-11 lead for Emerson. Even after the Saints tied the set again, a Goldman kill and two Emmanuel errors gave the underdog Lions a 16-13 lead, turning the tables and forcing a timeout by the Saints.

The Lions kept a tight lead thanks to Hackett’s attacks, as his latest spike put them up 18-16. The Saints then rallied toward a 22-21 advantage before the Lions regained the lead off another Higgins spike. Goldman sacked an Emmanuel attempt, hit the “too small” celebration, and gave the Lions set point—24-22.

The Lions committed two errors before a Goldman kill gave them a 25-24 lead. But with Emerson having an opportunity to steal the set, the Saints stayed alive with a kill of their own. The flurry of ties and lead changes continued, both teams flexing with kills left and right. A Hackett slam tied the game at 31, and Emerson needed only two more to win the third set and extend the match. 

Despite solid rallies, a kill and block by the Saints ended Emerson’s attempts at an upset, as Emmanuel defended home court with a 33-31 victory. The Lions’ 31 points were the most they scored in a set this season.

Hackett finished with 14 kills, while the senior Beck ended his final game with a team-high 29 aces. Defensively, Muse led the Lions with four block assists, and junior libero Semaj Byrd tallied ten digs.

Despite the result, Beck enjoyed the “hard-fought” aspect of the match.

“It was 33-31 at the end there, that’s a fine way to go out—I don’t mind that at all,” he said. “I was having fun. It was nice [and] competitive, but still friendly through both sides of the net. That’s my ideal game right there.”

“There was more purpose in what we were trying to do,” head coach Ben Read said. “We did a great job of actually slowing them down … We slowed down [Emmanuel’s 6’6” outside hitter] Michael Shelley, who’s probably going to be the Offensive Player of the Year in [the] conference.”

Read also reflected on the team’s small but mighty group fighting through the season’s challenges.

“We came in with eight guys, and somehow, we left with eight guys,” Read said. “That’s pretty impressive. To [have] eight players all season and keep them all healthy, I don’t know how we did it.”

Beck said throughout the “roller-coaster” journey, he’ll remember how the team rallied together this season.

“When you have this few [number] of people, you really have no other choice if you want to keep going,” he added. “But the ability of everybody to bounce back from some pretty crushing blows this year has been amazing to see.”

Read previously said this season would be one of growth for the Lions, and he believes the biggest area of improvement came in the team’s systems.

“Offensive, defensive, knowing where to serve, blocking,” he added. “Execution, trying to get more people on board with going through the game plan, and trusting that what we’re trying to do here will give us a better chance of winning.”

He was also proud of the team’s various wins against higher-ranked opponents, citing victories against Regis College, Elms College, and Rivier University toward the end of the season.

“We beat two teams that are ranked ahead of us in [the] playoffs, so that’s pretty huge,” Read added. “It’s just seeing that the changes we worked hard on are actually working at the end of the season. If we had a little bit more time, who knows where we’d be?”

Beck cited the team’s resilience as the year went on, having gone from an 0-7 start to a 9-9 finish in their last 18 regular-season matches. The Lions finished with a 9-17 overall record, including a 5-9 showing in GNAC action.

“We were not an underdog team. If you got over us in any set, it was, ‘Roll over, that was it,’” he said. “It’s amazing to see the ability of this team to now come back from deficits [that] you’re going to be in with this few [of an] amount of people.”

He also lauded the team’s improvement in maturity and technicality, adding, “It’s amazing the growth we’ve seen with the amount of time everyone’s gained on the court.”

For Beck, “it’s never over.”

“[At the] end of the day, [the] set ends, you go onto the next set, you go onto the next game,” he said. “Down 24-0, there’s always a chance—keep pushing. Overall, there will be another day, so don’t give in.”