WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
>> Saint Francis men's volleyball dropped their second match in the Harvard Invitational to Lincoln Memorial (26-24, 29-31, 25-21, 22-25, 8-15).
>> Andrew Deardorff recorded a career-high 26 kills, the most by a Red Flash player since Michael Fisher dropped 29 on Jan. 8, 2020 against #7 Stanford. The senior outside hitter has tallied five straight matches with double-digit kills and 79 overall during the span. He had a hitting percentage of .480 as well.
>> Michael Mosbacher (13) and Brady Stump (10) joined in with double-digit kills as a part of the team's 64 kills. That's the most registered by Saint Francis since the 2023 squad posted 71 on Feb. 18, 2023 at LIU.
TURNING POINT OF THE MATCH
The Railsplitters took set four to tie the match at two sets apiece. They used the momentum to go up 7-3 early on in the final set and never look back. They increased their advantage as high as 14-8 on their way to the match victory.
FLASH MOMENTS
Lincoln Memorial started out the first set with a 14-9 advantage. Saint Francis responded with a 12-4 run to go up 21-17. The Red Flash offense registered seven of their set-high 16 kills during this stretch. The Railsplitters proved to be unfazed, however, as they countered with a 7-3 rally to knot the duel at 24. That proved to be their last gasp, as a service error and a Nicholas Lynch kill help give Saint Francis a 26-24 set one win.
The designated home team got out to a 14-8 lead to open up set two. They extended it to 19-14 lead three quarters of the way through, but the Red Flash rallied with a 6-1 run to tie things up at 20. What followed was the teams exchanging points deep into extra sets. Saint Francis had five straight chances to close the deal starting from 25-24 to 29-28, but could not take advantage. It was Lincoln Memorial that went on a 3-0 run to take the second set, 31-29.
In a reversal of set one, it was the Red Flash that jumped out to a 14-9 advantage to begin the third set. The Railsplitters had to rally with a 7-3 run to cut their deficit to 17-16 and eventually 21-20 going into the final serves. The comeback would be thwarted, however, as Saint Francis went on a 4-1 run to pull ahead. A Stump kill closed out a 25-22 set three victory.
The fourth set was taken over by Lincoln Memorial. They jumped out to a 16-7 lead and kept their advantage at 21-13 going into the final serves. The Red Flash attempted a comeback with a 9-3 run, but a kill from the Railsplitters' Axel van Baars proved to be set point.
FLASH NUGGETS
The reigning two-time Northeast Conference Rookie of the Week winner Kyle Charles dished out a season-best 59 assists and led the Red Flash offense to their highest hitting percentage of the season at .304. The freshman setter is up to 218 through his first seven starts. He added three digs, one ace, and one solo block during the match as well.
Saint Francis had a season-high 44 digs in tonight's contest. It included a career-high 12 from Cole Dorn. Stump pitched in eight and the duo of Mosbacher and Deardorff followed behind with seven.
Middle blocker Sam Lane and middle hitter Nicholas Lynch each recorded seven kills. Lane led the team with four assisted blocks and had a hitting percentage of .411.
Deardorff and Stump chipped in two aces to their stat lines.
NEXT UP FOR FLASH
Men's Volleyball will be back in action in two weeks when they play No. 17 Penn State in a home-and-home series Feb. 14-15.
