Men’s Volleyball Plays Host to Ball State and Fort Wayne
Bobby Dragon
Flash Points:
- Saint Francis closes out non-conference play at home against Ball State and Fort Wayne
- Friday and Saturday's matches will be broadcasted on NEC Front Row.
- Both games are slated to start at 7 p.m.
Loretto, Pa- The Saint Francis men's volleyball team closes out non-conference play at home this weekend as they play Fort Wayne and Ball State. Both matches are set to start at 7 p.m.
About the Flash
Saint Francis enters the weekend with a 5-5 overall record, as they finished with a split against No. 3 Ohio State and Queens University of Charlotte. After dropping a 3-0 match to Ohio State, SFU managed to bounce back and take three games from the Royals to provide momentum coming into this weekend.
Stephen Braswell (Manchester, Pa./Northeastern) was masterful during the weekend, leading the Red Flash in kills (24), points per set (4.83), kills per set (4) and total digs (13). Against Ohio State, Braswell finished the match with 12 kills on 27 attacks which helped him post a .370 hitting percentage. He also contributed with 7 digs on the defensive side. In a three-set victory against Queens University of Charlotte, the senior posted 12 kills and finished with a .321 clip.
As a team, Saint Francis sits in fourth place in the EIVA standings behind Penn State, Charleston and Harvard. They currently lead the EIVA in points (464.0) and digs (290) so far on the season. The Red Flash have a few players ranked near the top in the EIVA in statistics, with Braswell leading in kills (93) and service aces per set (0.61).
Cole Thompson (Los Alamitos, Calif./Los Alamitos) and
Brandon Buck (Baden, Pa./Ambridge) each finishing in the top five on the kills list as they combine with 160 kills total. Defensively, Braswell and
Ryan Alu (Pipersville, PA/Central Bucks West HS) finish two and three in digs (109) while
Keith Kegerreis (Chambersburg, Pa./Chambersburg) comes in fifth in blocks per set (1.09).
About the Mastodons
Fort Wayne Mastodons will come into Loretto this weekend with a 7-0 overall record as they defeated four EIVA teams: Princeton, NJIT, Harvard, and Sacred Heart. Offensively, Pelegrin Vargas, who has 85 kills and is averaging 3.86 kills per set, leads Fort Wayne. On the defensive side, Michael Keegan leads the Mastodons, averaging 2.38 digs per set and has amassed 50 digs on the season. Richie Diedrich leads the team with 24 blocks.
About the Cardinals
Ball State Cardinals comes into Loretto with a 4-4 overall record and ranked No. 15 in the country. The Cardinals went 0-2 last weekend as they dropped two 3-1 sets to Pepperdine and George Mason. Matt Walsh leads the offensive attack for Ball State with 77 kills. Cortland Scharenbor is first on the squad with 226 assist while Nick Lavanchy paces the defense with 48 digs and Matt Walsh is first for BSU in blocks with 41.
Live Stats and Video
Both matches this weekend will be provided with live stats along with live video. Ball State is also providing live audio for the match Saturday. All information is located in the men's volleyball schedule page.
Next Time Out….
Saint Francis will open up EIVA next Saturday as they welcome in Penn State at 7 p.m.
