Flash Points: 

• Emily Marcinowski (Strongsville, Ohio/Padua Franciscan) had a double double with 12 kills and 15 digs
• Breanna Opera (Lancaster, N.Y./Lancaster ) had eight aces 
• Sophia Esposito (Coraopolis, PA/Montour (Gardner-Webb)) had seven block assists

LORETTO, PA-  Saint Francis rallied back from a two sets to one deficit against the Central Connecticut Blue Devils but fell 15-9 in the deciding fifth set on Sunday afternoon at DeGol Arena. 

The Flash got a balanced effort across the ball  with three players getting into double digits in kills and four players with double digit digs. Breanna Opera (Lancaster, N.Y./Lancaster ) was a force on the service line, ripping eight of the team's 11 aces on Sunday. 

The first set was a game of runs on Sunday, with the Flash running off a streak of eight-straight points to turn a 6-4 deficit into a 12-6 lead. Out of the CCSU timeout, the Blue Devils answered immediately, winning seven of the next eight points including five straight to tie the match at 13. The teams traded smaller runs with CCSU building a three-point lead only to see Saint Francis answer with four-straight points. A second four-point run from CCSU put them on the brink of a first set win, going up 24-22. However, the Flash rallied back with two Kelsey Roush (Johnstown, Pa./Richland) kills and an ace from Amelia Metzler (Littleton, Colo./Chatfield) as part of a four-point rally to take set one 26-24. 

Set two was another back-and-forth affair until the midway point of the set. Central Connecticut was able to gain a bit of breathing room after winning five of six points to open a 16-12 advantage. A Saint Francis timeout could not stop the Blue Devils' momentum as they were never able to climb to within three points the rest of the way. The Blue Devils tied the match at a set apiece after the 25-17 set two victory. 

In set three, kills from Breanna Opera (Lancaster, N.Y./Lancaster ) and strong defense helped to erase a mid-set lead for the Blue Devils and tie the match at 14. Off one of her eight aces, Opera's service error sparked a CCSU run to open a 20-15 lead. The Flash would rally to cut the lead to 20-18 before another four-point run from CCSU put them on the brink of the third set. The Flash would not go quietly with Sophie Murdock (Lake Orion, Mich./Lake Orion ) earning a pair of blocks as part of a four-point run to cut the Blue Devils lead to two. CCSU cut the rally short and ended the third set with a kill to take a two set to one lead with 25-22 victory. 

Saint Francis rode Opera's service game to an early set four lead and never let up. The Flash led 12-7, forcing a CCSU timeout, and despite a Blue Devil run that would tie the match, never lost composure. The Saint Francis defense forced two attack errors and earned a pair of blocks that helped build a 18-14 lead. Another CCSU timeout led to another Blue Devil run, as they ripped off seven of eight points to take a 21-20 lead.  Emily Marcinowksi had a pair of kills and a block assist in a pivotal stretch that saw SFU win the final four points of the set and force a deciding fifth with a 25-22 victory. 

In the final set, the Flash built a 6-4 advantage off a Christa White (Rochester, N.Y./Spencerport) ace, CCSU would rally back and the match would be tied at eight. The turning point of the set followed as the Blue Devils won four-straight points to go up 12-8. Saint Francis couldn't recover and dropped the heartbreaker 15-9 in the final set. 

The win moves CCSU to 2-0 in conference play while the Flash fall to 0-2. Saint Francis heads to Sacred Heart and Fairleigh Dickinson next weekend for their first road NEC weekend of the season. Both matches are set for a 1 p.m. match time.