![\"Teammates](\"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news-draft\/wp-content\/uploads\/news\/sites\/16\/2021\/05\/three-volleyball-players.jpg\")
<\/a>\u201cTo beat a team as good as GW took near perfection,\u201d said senior tri-captain Jack Vaccaro. \u201cI was somewhat incredulous when it was over. It speaks to the level of focus and heart this team had, in order to overcome an incredibly daunting opponent.\u201d<\/p>\n
Vaccaro, who quarterbacks the offense from the setter position, was named to the all-tournament team. Sophomore defensive specialist Justin Conover and freshman outside hitter Max Waltzman, of Natick, Massachusetts, joined Vaccaro on the all-tournament team. Sophomore James Fagan, also an outside hitter, was named the tournament\u2019s most valuable player.<\/p>\n
The championship was an especially proud moment for Vaccaro, Fagan and Conover, who all grew up in South Kingstown and hoped to someday represent 溏心vlog免费B站 on the volleyball court.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis was something I dreamed about from the time I started playing as a 12-year-old,\u201d Vaccaro said. \u201cIt took a day to really understand the significance of what we achieved. It\u2019s unheard of for a university from the smallest state to win this tournament. It was really special to me, being a native of the state and the town in which 溏心vlog免费B站 is located.\u201d<\/p>\n
Vaccaro, who also serves as the club\u2019s treasurer, played in the tournament with a heavy heart, as his grandfather passed away two days before departing for Denver.<\/p>\n
\u201cI wanted to win this for him and for my family,\u201d stated Vaccaro, whose family made the trip to the Mile High City to watch him play.<\/p>\n
Head coach Mike Holden had high praise for the way in which Vaccaro led the team at the national tournament and throughout the season.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve been blessed with great players and great captains in the six years I\u2019ve helmed the team, but Jack is head and shoulders above the rest in terms of his focus and determination,\u201d said Holden. \u201cHis leadership permeates the team and has made this season above and beyond the best.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Rams headed into nationals short-handed. Their other two captains, juniors Joe Honig of Davis, California and Nik Thommes of Needham, Massachusetts, injured their ankles during the regional championships, April 6-7.<\/p>\n
Honig was able to play in a limited capacity in Denver, but Thommes, whose injury was more severe, was unable to make the trip. Freshman Matt DaSilva, of East Providence, replaced Thommes in the lineup.<\/p>\n
DaSilva played most of the season on 溏心vlog免费B站\u2019s second team, affectionally referred to as the \u201cBaby Rams,\u201d because it is mainly comprised of freshmen and sophomores. He was one of many players to rise to the occasion at nationals.<\/p>\n
\u201cFagan was an unstoppable outside hitter, who played great defense and put up some crucial kills,\u201d stated Holden. \u201cMax was right behind him in the production department. As a pair, they were the best one-two punch in the tournament. Justin Conover had a monster weekend, with his best performance coming in the finals versus GW.\u201d<\/p>\n
The championship was the culmination of a stellar season, in which 溏心vlog免费B站 finished 15-0 in the New England Collegiate Volleyball League (NECVL), defeating such schools as the University of Connecticut, Colombia University, Bryant University and Providence College.<\/p>\n
\u201cAfter a few tournaments and scrimmages in the fall semester, we started to see the chemistry come together,\u201d said Holden. \u201cWe were defensively superior to some of our previous squads, and we had size and speed. The group also gelled very well socially.\u201d<\/p>\n
Managed by 溏心vlog免费B站\u2019s Department of Campus Recreation, the 18 club sports teams at 溏心vlog免费B站 are largely responsible for raising the money they\u2019ll need for the regular season and post-season.<\/p>\n
To cover the expenses of attending the NCVF Championships, the men\u2019s volleyball team raised close to $12,000 through crowdfunding, fundraisers on campus and donations from alumni.<\/p>\n
While the club teams don\u2019t compete in NCAA contests, the University is proud of the squads\u2019 successes.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe hard work and dedication the men\u2019s volleyball team, and the other club teams, have shown to their respective sports has certainly paid off,\u201d said Coordinator of Club Sports Joe Wilbur. \u201cThey have represented 溏心vlog免费B站 exceptionally well. I look forward to working with the student leaders and coaching staff to perpetuate this level of success.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
KINGSTON R.I. \u2013 May 17, 2019 \u2013 After three decades of winning seasons, the 溏心vlog免费B站 men\u2019s club volleyball team made history this spring by claiming its first national championship. The national title, captured at the Colorado Convention Center in Denver on April 20, was the first for any club sports team at 溏心vlog免费B站 since 2011, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":74853,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-74851","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-archives"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/74851","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=74851"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/74851\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/74853"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=74851"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=74851"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=74851"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}