2008 Season in Review
Panthers Make Tourney; Fall in Semifinals
Grabowski-Clark, Cass Named All-Skyline
Purchase, NY – The Purchase College Men’s Volleyball team took great strides this season, as they punched their ticket to the playoffs before losing to top seeded Bard College in the Skyline Conference semifinals.
The Panthers, who finished 2008 with an overall 4-18 mark and a 2-6 record in the Skyline Conference, will look to improve next season and build off of their impressive individual performances in 2008.
The Panthers were led by Daniel Grabowski-Clark (SO/Farmington, CT). The co-captain finished the season with 217 kills and 149 digs, leading the team in both categories and was named to the Skyline Conference All-Skyline First Team at season's end. He also led the league in service aces this year, finishing with 49 on the season.
Co-captain Bic Cass (JR/Brookline, MA) had an outstanding year for the Panthers as well. The setter was named to the All-Skyline Second Team during a season where he was named to Skyline Honor Roll for Player of the Week five consecutive weeks. Cass led the team in assists with 371, and finished second on the team in kills with 115.
Rookie Derek Miles (FR/Buffalo, NY) had a solid freshman campaign for the Panthers. Miles led the team in blocks with 74, and also contributed 98 kills on the season. The 74 blocks made Miles the Skyline leader on the season.
The Panthers have built a strong core for next season. With both captains returning, the Panthers have a lot to be optimistic about as they try to make a Skyline Championship run next spring.
-Michael Wimmer
2008 Recaps:
Panthers Wrap Season Against Stevens Tech
Skyline Playoff: Bard Powers Past Purchase
Trio Leads Dolphins Past Purchase
Panthers Can't Escape Lightning Attack
Cass Named to All-Tournament Team at Bard
Poly Outlasts Purchase in Five
Bounce Back Panthers Trounce Maccabees
Gritty Effort for Grabowski-Clark, Panthers in Loss
Panthers Pounce, but Dolphins Splash Back
Poly Edges Purchase
Panthers Prey Hilbert; Win One-of-Three in Quad-Match
Miles Records Triple-Double at Brooklyn
Purchase Bounces Back, Sweep SVC
Panthers Fall in Home Opener
Nationally Ranked Ramapo Tops Purchase
For Starters: Panthers Pick Up First Win in Opener
2008 News:
Co-captains Garner Postseason Honors
Miles Named to Skyline Honor Roll
Cass All His Own: Five Straight Honor Roll Nods
Four Straight Honor Roll Appearances for Cass
Cass Tabbed for Third Straight Honor Roll Spot
Cass Garners Back-to-Back Honor Roll Nods
Cass Earns First Skyline Honor of Season
Back-to-back Honor Roll Honors for Grabowski-Clark
Killer Start for Grabowski-Clark
Improved Panthers Conclude Season at PBU
Purchase, NY (Mar. 18, 2007) – The Purchase College men’s volleyball team finished the season 9-15 overall following a 1-2 showing in the North Eastern Athletic Conference Men’s Volleyball Championships over the weekend at Philadelphia Biblical University.
The Panthers lost to eventual champion and top-seeded D’Youville in the opener 3-0 (30-18, 30-24 and 30-26) and then fell to No. 3 Villa Julie College 3-0 (30-23, 30-19 and 30-22) before bouncing back against conference rival Polytechnical University of New York in the fifth place match. Purchase downed the Fighting Blue Jays, a team they lost to in the final week of the season, 3-0 (30-26, 30-27 and 30-24).
The Panthers more than doubled their win total from 2006 and are on the road to success for 2008 where they are set to join the competitive North East Collegiate Volleyball Association (NECVA).
“Overall, it was a great season of improvement for the team and a step in the process for getting to the next level,” said Purchase Coach Jackie Goldstein, now in her third season at the helm. “We have a young core and are excited about the future.”
Middle hitter Daniel Grabowski-Clark (FR/Farmington, CT) led the team in the opener, recording 12 kills and 14 digs. Bic Cass (JR/Brookline, MA) added six kills and 14 digs against a tough Spartans lineup. Setter Sean Kenealy (SR/Rensselaer, NY) totaled a team-leading 24 assists in the loss.
Against the Mustangs, Grabowski-Clark finished with a team-high nine kills. Cass paced the Panthers with 13 digs. Purchase also received solid contributions from co-captain Daniel Connor (SR/Farmingville, NY) and defensive specialist Michael Shea (JR/Cortlandt Manor, NY).
Co-captain Aaron Waytkus (JR/Hoosick Falls, NY) delivered a strong performance with five kills and six digs, combining with Cass and Grabowkski-Clark, who led the way in the win. Grabwoski-Clark totaled 11 kills, two assists, three aces and 13 digs, while Cass, a potent left-handed opposite hitter, finished with a team-high 16 kills and 20 digs in the victory. Kenealy amassed 44 assists. Jonathan Cheung (SR/Cresskill, NJ), in his last college game, also played well with eight kills and two digs to his credit.
Purchase’s Michael Seltzer (FR/Washington, D.C.) and Theodore Glendinning played well down the stretch of the season and will look to add to the core of lineup in 2008. Reserve players and the team’s young core learned a lot from the four seniors, including three-sport athlete Anthony Aloisi (SR/Rye Brook, NY), Cheung, Kenealy and co-captain Connor.
Grabowski-Clark Wins NEAC Player-of-the-Week
Purchase, NY (Mar. 14, 2007) – One of the best young players in the North Eastern Athletic Conference, Daniel Grabowski-Clark was named the NEAC Men’s Volleyball Student-Athlete of the Week for the week ending Mar. 11. 
Grabowski-Clark (FR/Farmington, CT), a former standout at
The freshman middle hitter started the week with a triple-double against
This is Grabowski-Clark’s first NEAC Men’s Volleyball Student-Athlete of the Week honor this season. He was also named Purchase College Student-Athlete of the Week for consecutive weeks and the third time this season after garnering the award once during the fall soccer season.
“It’s an honor to be selected by our conference,” Grabowski-Clark said. “Only one player a week is honored by the NEAC and it’s a privilege to be among a select few, the best players that the conference has to offer.”
Purchase Coach Jackie Goldstein applauded Grabowski-Clark on the recognition and said she expects even bigger things to come from this promising freshman. “He’s a great talent that continues to improve,” she said. “This recognition is only the beginning for Dan here at Purchase.”
The NEAC has 12 NCAA Division III member intuitions, including
Dolphins Top Panthers
Purchase, NY (Mar. 14, 2007) – The final home match for the Purchase College men’s volleyball team didn’t go as planned as the Panthers lost 3-0 to visiting College of Mount Saint Vincent Wednesday in a rescheduled contest.
The Dolphins, which improved to 11-13 overall, won the first game, 30-13, and pulled out 30-23 and 30-25 wins in the final two games to sweep the match. In the process, the Panthers fell to 8-13 overall in the non-conference affair.
Purchase will now turn its attention to the North Eastern Athletic Conference Finals at Philadelphia Biblical University Friday and Saturday. The six-seeded Panthers are set to open against D’Youville on Friday night.
In the loss, Bic Cass (JR/Brookline, MA) and Daniel Grabowski-Clark (FR/Farmington, CT) paced Purchase with seven and six kills, respectively. Cass also finished with seven digs and one ace, while Grabowski-Clark added seven digs.
Setter Sean Kenealy (SR/Rensselaer, NY) led the team with 20 assists. Co-captains Daniel Connor (SR/Farmingville, NY) and Aaron Waytkus (JR/Hoosick Falls, NY) also played well.
The Dolphins were led by sophomore setter Chris Dotoratos and senior Dan Williams.
Spirit Moves Purchase to Victory
Seniors Shine in Win
Purchase, NY (Mar. 13, 2007) – It was Spirit Night at the Purchase Gymnasium as fans donated canned goods to support a local food pantry. Reciprocating the goodwill, the Panthers gave their fans something to cheer about as they defeated the Clippers of Webb Institute 3-0 – 30-16, 30-20 and 30-18.
Indeed it was a night of festivities, as in addition to celebrating the charitable contributions of the student-body, four seniors on the team: Anthony Aloisi (SR/Rye Brook, NY); Jonathan Cheung (SR/Cresskill, NJ); Daniel Connor (SR/Farmingville, NY); and Sean Kenealy (SR/Rensselaer, NY) were honored in a pre-match ceremony.
Energized, the senior class shined. Kenealy had a strong matchfinishing with 34 assists to go along with five aces, a team high. Connor had seven kills while Cheung contributed four. Aloisi finished with 11 digs.
As the Panthers paid homage to their past and present, Daniel Grabowski-Clark (FR/Farmington, CT) served notice of their future. The middle hitter, who was named the North Eastern Athletic Conference (NEAC) Student-Athlete of the Week earlier Tuesday, ignited the Purchase attack, collecting a team-high 11 kills to go along with 13 digs. Michael Shea (JR/Cortlandt Manor, NY) chipped in two kills and six digs, and Aaron Waytkus (JR/Hoosick Falls, NY) had six kills and four digs. Theodore Glendinning (JR/Forestville, NY) tied with Aloisi for second in kills with 11 digs.
The win improves Purchase to 8-12 overall. Webb Institute drops to 0-3. The Panthers will try to make it two-in-a-row Wednesday (Mar. 14) against the College of Mt. St. Vincent in a rescheduled matchup.
NEAC Rivals Fight to the Finish
Purchase Falls to Polytech
Purchase, NY (Mar. 12, 2007) – Without their starting setter Sean Kenealy (SR/Rensselaer, NY), the Panthers mustered up a valiant effort but fell to the Fighting Blue Jays of Polytechncial University of New York 3-1 –26-30, 27-30, 30-27, 21-30 – at the Purchase Gymnasium Monday night.
The match was originally scheduled for Mar. 6, but due to a series of conflicts, the match was canceled and rescheduled three times.
The first game saw Polytechnic jump out to a 17-11 advantage, leaving many people to think the Blue Jays would win in a romp. But led by the spirited play of Michael Shea (JR/Cortlandt Manor, NY) and Daniel Grabowski-Clark (FR/Farmington, CT) the Panthers would fight back and get within one point at 27-26 before Polytech closed the game out with four points in a row.
Game two saw much of the same frenzied action by both teams as there were six ties and five lead changes. As in the previous game, the Panthers drew within one at 27-26, before Polytech closed the match scoring three of the next four points.
The Panthers triumphed in the third game, energized by an early 9-3 lead. Polytech hung in to tie the score at several points throughout, finally evening the score 26-26 before Purchase closed out on a 4-1 spurt to win.
It was Polytech who jumped out to the early lead in the fourth game, 10-3. The Panthers went on a 9-2 run pulling within one. Polytech would then go on an 11-6 run to take a 24-18 lead. After the Panthers trimmed the lead to 24-20, the Blue Jays closed out on a 6-1 run.
The win improves the Blue Jays to 9-26 overall. The loss drops the Panthers to an overall record of 7-12 and 0-5 in the North Eastern Athletic Conference (NEAC). They will play host to
Panthers Split
And why not, Purchase went 1-1 this weekend, losing to
The Panthers continue to play well down the stretch. Purchase lost 3-0 to the Brewers, falling 30-19, 30-24 and 30-26 in a hard fought matchup and then the Panthers recovered on Sunday in
A 9-3 Vassar run in game one turned a 5-5 tie into a 14-8 lead, an advantage the Brewers would not relinquish. Purchase got as close as 21-17 before three straight kills from Scott Leserman put Vassar back into control of the game. Phil Tully helped to drive the offense in the opener, recording seven kills.
Game two was a see-saw affair, featuring ten separate ties. Neither team held a lead of more than a point until a kill from Purchase co-captain Daniel Connor (SR/Farmingville, NY) put the Panthers up 22-19. Down three points and with Brian Bacchi serving, the Brewers proceeded to score eight straight points to put them within reach of victory.
The finale was also a close game, with ties as late as 15-15. A 9-2 Vassar run, highlighted by an ace from Bacchi, put the Brewers up 24-17. Strong serving from Purchase’s defensive specialist Michael Shea (JR/Cortlandt Manor, NY) brought the Panthers as close as 27-23, but Vassar senior Dan Dickson, playing in his final home match, closed out the win with a kill.
Daniel Grabowski-Clark (FR/Farmington, CT) recorded 11 kills and nine digs, leading the Panthers in both categories.
On Sunday, Grabowski-Clark once again paced the Panthers, recording 12 kills, six aces and 12 digs in the win. Sean Kenealy (SR/
Bic Cass (JR/Brookline, MA) also turned in a strong performance for the Panthers, finishing with nine kills and five digs in the victory.
Purchase has three home games remaining in the regular season before the NEAC tournament next weekend at Philadelphia Biblical University.
-All Photos Taken by Caroline Hoskins/Sports Information
