AUBURNDALE, Massachusetts - The American International College men's volleyball team forced a fifth set after falling behind 0-2, but fell 18-25, 17-25, 25-20, 26-24, 7-15 to Lasell University on Wednesday, January 21.

AIC is now 0-3 on the season.

The Lasers jumped out to an early lead in the first, and though AIC was able to keep the set close for awhile, the home side never trailed, pulling away thanks in large part to strong hitting and AIC miscues; Lasell hit .458 in the set, and the Yellow Jackets made nine errors. The second set went similarly, as Lasell terminated on 10 of its 17 swings with just one error, while AIC scuffled and hit just .043.

AIC had its backs against the wall, and responded, jumping out to an early lead and hanging on; the Lasers did tie the set at 10-10, but could not pull even again, with key blocks by Emil Zhmaidziak and Dymittry Terra helping build the advantage, and Connor White aced the set point serve to force a fourth.

That set was a back-and-forth affair, with AIC trying to push the match to the limit and Lasell hoping to prevent a comeback. White and Jamilson Almeida were brilliant offensively, combining for nine of AIC's 16 kills on just 11 swings, and White put up three blocks in the set as well. The set went past 25, but only barely, as a swing and miss by the Lasers ended things in AIC's favor at 26-24.

The Yellow Jackets had forced a fifth, but the effort took so much out of the tank that the Lasers were able to handle business, rushing to a 10-1 lead and scoring an astounding six of their 15 points on blocks, ultimately taking the set 15-7 and the match with it.

Almeida led AIC with 13 kills, while Willie Lopez Morales had 10. Terra had six kills, hit .417, and had a hand in seven of AIC's 12 blocks. Aidan Miller dished 23 assists and Rian Woods had a further 19, while Armani Anderson led AIC with 10 digs.

The Yellow Jackets open their home slate on Friday, January 23 with a 7:00 p.m. first serve against Sacred Heart University at the Butova Gym.