WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
>> Saint Francis men's volleyball dropped both of their matches in the doubleheader with back-to-back national champion UCLA (15-25, 19-25, 20-25) and No. 2 Long Beach State (13-25, 15-25, 12-25) on Friday.
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Michael Mosbacher led the Red Flash with nine kills to go along with four digs and an ace in the first match against the Bruins.
Brady Stump recorded seven kills, a .429 hitting percentage, and seven digs as well.
>> Mosbacher posted eight kills and two digs in the second match against the Beach.
>> It was the second and third matches against a team ranked in the AVCA Top 20 Preseason Coaches Poll. UCLA and Long Beach State were both coming off a 2024 campaign where they played one another in the national championship match. The Bruins won 3-1 to repeat as champions.
TURNING POINT OF THE UCLA MATCH
UCLA took the first two sets to go up 2-0 in the match. The Bruins continued their momentum by taking a 16-11 lead midway through set three. The Red Flash responded with a 5-0 run to make it 16 all. UCLA proceeded to counter the rally with a 9-4 run to ultimately give them the victory.
UCLA FLASH MOMENTS
The opening set saw the Bruins get out to a 15-8 lead and never look back. They would push the margin to as much as 20-11 on their way to a 25-15 set one victory.
Set two began with the teams battling in an even 4-4 affair. UCLA then pulled away with a 5-1 to go up 9-5, and eventually pushed their advantage to 23-15. Saint Francis went on a 4-1 run to cut the deficit to 24-18, but it wasn't enough momentum as the Bruins took set two, 25-19.
UCLA FLASH NUGGETS
The Red Flash registered 26 digs as a team. Andrew Deardorff and Brayden Kuruzovich collecting three apiece.
Luke Bockius tallied his first collegiate kill in the opening set.
TURNING POINT OF THE LONG BEACH STATE MATCH
Long Beach took a similar 2-0 match lead going into the third set. The Beach would go on to have a 13-5 lead at the start of the third set and never relinquished it. They went on to win the set 25-12 and secured the match win.
LONG BEACH STATE FLASH MOMENTS
Set one began with the teams tied at 6 and Long Beach State held just a slim 12-10 lead near the midway point. The Beach proceeded to go on a 13-3 run to finish the set with a 25-13 set one win.
The second set started off similar to the first, with Saint Francis behind by a mere 12-10 deficit. The Beach repeated the same script as the first set with a 13-5 run to take set two, 25-15.
LONG BEACH STATE FLASH NUGGETS
Kyle Charles and Richard Kaminski made their first collegiate starts at setter and libero, respectively. Charles finished the match with 17 assists and two kills.
Through three matches, Mosbacher has registered 26 kills against three top 20 opponents.
NEXT UP FOR FLASH
Men's Volleyball will return to action in Chicago, Ill. when they face #12 Loyola Chicago and Rockhurst Jan. 17-18. The first match against the Ramblers will be at 8:00 p.m. EST/7:00 p.m. est on the 17th, and the following day's affair versus Rockhurst will occur at 2:00 p.m. EST/1:00 p.m. EST. The battle on the 18th will be considered a home match for Saint Francis.
The match on the 17th will be the fourth-straight match where the Red Flash are playing a top 20 team.
