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LORETTO, PA- Coming off a 2-1 Northeast Conference homestand, Saint Francis hits the road again for a pair of key conference matches taking on Sacred Heart on Friday night and Fairleigh Dickinson on Saturday. 

Both matches can be seen on NEC Front Row with Friday's match against the Pioneers starting at six and the FDU match at five on Saturday. 

ABOUT THE RED FLASH
After going 2-1 on their three-match home stand, the Red Flash sit at 2-3 in the Northeast Conference, a game in back of Sacred Heart for the fourth and final playoff spot. The Red Flash have hit their stride in Northeast Conference play, with incredible balance on offense. In the five NEC matches, Nicole Adams (Clifton Park, NY/Shenendehowa East), Alexis Lambert (McKinney, Tx./McKinney-Boyd) and Madi Tyus (Plano, TX/Bishop Lynch) all average 3.30 kills per set. That is thanks in part to the play of setter Amelia Metzler (Littleton, Colo./Chatfield), the senior stepped into the lineup during NEC play and has responded with a conference leading 9.2 assists per set. The defense has picked it up as well with Jess Barrett (Broadview Heights, OH/North Royalton) leading the team and posting the second-best dig mark in the conference, averaging 5.72 digs per set. Daysha Shamlin (Bear, Del./Tower Hill) has been a stalwart on the block, averaging an even block per set since she was entered into the starting lineup. 

ABOUT THE PIONEERS
Sacred Heart comes into the match at 3-2 in the NEC, fresh off a 1-1 weekend at Bryant and Central Connecticut. Like the Red Flash, the Pioneers have a balanced attack in NEC play. While Liisel Nelis leads the squad with over 3.5 kills per set, five others average at or better than 1.5 kills per set. Sarah Ciszek has done an excellent job reading the block as the Pioneers' setter, as she is right behind Metzler with 9.06 assists per set. One wildcard to look out for will be the aggressive serving of the Pioneers, who lead the NEC at over two aces per set led by Alix Polk who is second in the NEC in serving.  The Sacred Heart defense has been a team effort, as they have limited teams to a .138 hitting percentage through five conference matches. 

ABOUT THE KNIGHTS
FDU comes into the weekend still in search of their first NEC win of the season. They are led by Erika Sullivan, who ranks in the top-10 in the conference in both kills per set and hitting percentage. She's posted seven double doubles so far this season including a 13 kill performance against SFBK where the Knights took a set off the Terriers. Brooke Stevens  and Kati Quaintance lead a block that has had a strong start to NEC play with each averaging over a block per set.

SERIES HISTORIES
The Red Flash lead the series with both teams, owning a 15-13 edge on Sacred Heart and a 29-26 advantage versus FDU. The Red Flash and Pioneers split last season with each defending their home court with a sweep. SFU has won the last three matches against the Knights including a 3-1 victory in New Jersey last season. 

LOOKING AHEAD
Saint Francis is back at home next weekend for homecoming as they welcome in Bryant and Central Connecticut. There will also be a celebration for the 50 years of women's athletics at Saint Francis with a social prior to Friday's match versus Bryant and a tailgate prior to Saturday's football game and CCSU match. Friday's social starts at 6 p.m. in the Stokes Room at DeGol Arena.