WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
>> Saint Francis men's volleyball started off Northeast Conference play with a straight set win over D'Youville in the first match of the series Friday night (29-27, 25-20, 25-16).

>> Andrew Deardorff led the team in kills with 14 and tied Cole Dorn for the most service aces with three. The senior provided three digs, two blocks, and an assist as well.

>> Brady Stump and Sam Lane nearly had identical statlines. The two each had 10 kills and four blocks, but Stump added on three digs compared to Lane's two. For Lane, the junior tied his career high for slams. He also tallied an assist.

>> Saint Francis has now won six of their last seven matches dating back to February 21 against Dominican (N.Y.).

TURNING POINTS OF THE MATCH
Set one began with the Saints jumping out to a 14-10 lead just before the media timeout. The Red Flash made a little comeback to tie the set at 20 apiece. They continued gaining momentum and went ahead 24-23 going into set point. From there, D'Youville was able to avoid losing the first set four separate times until the score was 27-27 all. Saint Francis was finally able to put an end to matters after a kill from Lane and an attack error from the Saints' Tymek Brzoza that helped give themselves a 29-27 set one victory.

The second set started with D'Youville taking an early 9-8 advantage. It would not last, however, as the Red Flash scored four-straight points afterwards and wouldn't relinquish the lead from there. The closest that D'Youville would get to the lead is cutting their deficit to 22-20. The comeback was thwarted by another three-straight points from Saint Francis that put an end to the set. Deardorff finished off the set with an ace to put the team up 2-0 by a set two final score of 25-20.

Set three was commanded by the Red Flash. After an even 6-6 score in the opening serves, the squad accumulated five-straight points that helped open up the floodgates. They pushed their advantage to 18-13 and continued their hot spurt by making the score 24-15 heading into match point. Kyle Charles put an exclamation point on the match with a kill to give Saint Francis the win.

FLASH MOMENTS
With the Red Flash down 22-20 in the first set, Deardorff dominated through the remaining serves. He tallied four kills that helped bring the team back and ultimately led to the set one win.

During the team's 4-0 run that catapulted them to their 12-9 lead that they wouldn't give up in set two, Dorn was responsible for three points in a row, as he started it with a kill and then registered back-to-back aces. The junior compiled all three of his service aces during the second set.

In the 3-0 run by Saint Francis that helped put the squad up 2-0, it began with a kill from Lane and was followed by Lane and Stump joining it to reject an attack from the Saints.

It took an all-around effort by the Red Flash in order to dominate the final set. The offensive attack put up 16 kills and a .609 hitting percentage. Meanwhile, the defense held D'Youville to a set-low six kills.

FLASH NUGGETS
Deardorff has now posted 10 or more kills in 13 of the last 15 matches dating back to January 18 versus Rockhurst. During the stretch, the senior has averaged 16.5 kills a contest.

Stump recorded his sixth-straight match with double-digit slams in tonight's contest. Going back to the first matchup against Dominican on February 21, the junior has collected 81 kills combined.

Kyle Charles led the Red Flash offense to 45 kills and an efficient .372 hitting percentage over the three sets. The freshman setter ended the night with 36 assists, four digs, two kills, and one block.

Brayden Gall got the start alongside Lane and joined him and Stump by notching four blocks. In the last four matches the sophomore has played, he has totaled 15 blocks, including two solo versus Charleston on March 1.

Luke Bockius started alongside Richard Kaminski in the double libero lineup and racked up eight digs. The freshman has tallied 22 in the two times he has gained significant playing time, with 14 of them coming on March 5 at Erskine.

Along with his three aces, Dorn accumulated six kills, five digs, and one block. The five digs were the second most on the team.

The Red Flash held the Saints to 27 kills and a .187 hitting percentage.

Jack Wilcox got into his first collegiate match during set three.

NEXT UP FOR FLASH
Men's Volleyball will face the Saints in the second match of the series Saturday afternoon at 4.