Flash Points

• Kelsey Roush (Johnstown, Pa./Richland) had 23 kills to lead the Red Flash
• Saint Francis handed Bryant its first loss of the NEC season
• Jenna Veres (Independence, Ohio/Padua Franciscan) led the defense with 31 kills
• SFU won at Bryant for the first time since the 2015 season

 
 
SMITHFIELD, RI- Saint Francis erased a two set to one deficit and handed Bryant their first loss of the NEC season with a 15-12 comeback win in five sets on Saturday night.
 
Kelsey Roush (Johnstown, Pa./Richland) had 23 kills to lead Saint Francis, sporting a robust .315 hitting percentage. The senior backed it up defensively with 16 digs and two block assists to lead the Red Flash.
 
Saint Francis came back to win 21-25, 25-20, 17-25, 25-22, 15-12 to move to 10-10 overall and 4-3 in the NEC, while Bryant is 15-9 and 6-1 in the NEC. With the win, the Red Flash snapped the Bulldogs' home win streak at 16, tied for 5th longest in the nation prior to Saturday. 
 
McMULLEN REACTION
"I am really proud of how we rallied back in the match, especially after last night," head coach Sara McMullen said. "We kept our composure all match long and showed great fight, especially in the fourth and fifth sets."
 
FIRST SET RECAP

• The First set took the tone of the entire match, a back-and-forth affair
• SFU took a 9-5 lead, ripping off four-straight points, paced by a Alexis Lambert (McKinney, Tx./McKinney-Boyd) kill and a Cecilia Esposito (Coraopolis, Pa./Montour) service ace
• Bryant rallied back to tie the match at 11, then took the lead 16-12 with a service run from Kristyn Sperry
• Kills by Roush and Esposito brought the Red Flash back to tie the set at 18, but couldn't grab the lead
• Bryant took control of the set, scoring the next four points of the set to go up 22-18 and won the set 25-21

SECOND SET RECAP

• The teams again played a tight set, splitting the first six points
• Neither team could get a run going until SFU forced a Bryant timeout after SFU forced a trio of attack errors from Bryant and got a Lauren Williams (Reno, Nev./Damonte Ranch) ace to break open a 7-7 tie to lead 12-8
• Out of the timeout a Kelsey Roush (Johnstown, Pa./Richland) ace and more Bryant errors opened the Red Flash lead to seven at 16-9
• Bryant would rally back, cutting the Red Flash lead to one at 19-18 but could get no closer
• A Sophia Esposito (Coraopolis, PA/Montour (Gardner-Webb)) kill and a pair of kills from Roush ended the Bryant rally as SFU took the second set 25-20

 
THIRD SET RECAP

• The Red Flash jumped out to a quick start in the third, Kelsey Roush (Johnstown, Pa./Richland) and Cecilia Esposito (Coraopolis, Pa./Montour) combined for a pair of blocks as SFU took a 4-1 lead
• SFU held the lead through the first part of the set, leading 8-5 after a Lambert and Sophia Esposito (Coraopolis, PA/Montour (Gardner-Webb)) block
• Bryant roared back, scoring six-straight points to lead 11-8 and forced an SFU timeout
• The Bulldogs maintained the momentum out of the timeout, building their lead to as many as eight in the latter stages of the third set
• SFU could never stop the Bulldogs' momentum as the home team took the third set 25-17

 
FOURTH SET RECAP

• This set, it was Bryant who grabbed the momentum early, scoring three of the first four points
• SFU rallied back, kills by Roush and Lambert and a Roush ace, fueled a 4-0 run as SFU took back the lead
• Kills from Lambert and Marcinowski broke open a 7-7 tie as SFU grabbed an 11-7 lead
• Bryant would rally back to tie the set at 12 but would never regain the lead in the fourth
• A Williams ace and a kill from Roush helped SFU regain a four-point advantage
• The lead would grow to as many as five before Bryant rallied back to tie the match at 21 and forced a SFU timeout
• Roush and Lambert each had kills late as SFU scored the final three points of the fourth to take the set 25-22

FIFTH SET RECAP

• The Red Flash rode that momentum into the fifth set, getting a combo block and another Roush kill to take a 4-1 lead early
• A Marcinowski kill and the SFU defense forcing a pair of Bryant errors forced a Bryant timeout as the Red Flash led 7-2
• Bryant would cut the lead to 7-5, but the Red Flash scored the next three points, led by a Sophia Esposito (Coraopolis, PA/Montour (Gardner-Webb)) and Lambert block to lead 10-5
• Bryant rallied back, tying the match at 12, paced by a pair of combo blocks and forced a Red Flash timeout
• Kills from Roush and the final one from Marcinowski cemented the comeback and gave SFU the set and the win

 
This is the fourth time Roush has reached at least 20 kills in a match this season and second time she hit the 20-kill mark in conference (20 kills vs FDU).
 
LOOKING AHEAD
 
The Red Flash get a well-deserved home stand as they welcome in the Brooklyn school next weekend. St. Francis Brooklyn is up first on Friday night, first serve is set for 7 p.m. and can be seen on NEC Front Row.