Saint Francis University Athletics

MORRISVILLE, N.Y. – Saint Francis women's volleyball started day one of the Mustang Tournament going 1-1. They beat Alfred State 3-0 and fell to Alfred University 0-3. 

Saint Francis started the first set down 7-10 against Alfred State but quickly went on a huge 5-0 run to take the lead. Alexandra Sappia was the fuel behind the fire, aiding four of the five points for the Red Wolves. Laura Thomas started the run with a kill while Ava Holden and Sappia followed with back-to-back duo blocks. Emmi Adrian collected an ace to put Saint Francis on top, then Holden ended the run with a kill down the middle.  

During the second set, the Red Wolves were down 13-17 but came back to win the set 25-22. They went on a 6-1 run at the end with help from Jordyn Vincent, Madison Roman, and Sappia.  

To end the game, Saint Francis grabbed 10 straight points to give them a 13-6 lead. Sappia set Roman up for a kill to put the win within two points. Emme Larson laid one down the left side and then Roman slammed another one down to win 3-0.  

During the second match the Red Wolves had a slow start but regained momentum three points at a time to play a close rally with Alfred University. Saint Francis could not push past the wall that Alfred built and lost 0-3. Holden, Roman, Andrades-Villa, Thomas, Sappia, and Rauch helped aid in some Red Wolves points. 

Seven newcomers made their first collegiate start and debut on Friday: Emme Larson, Rylan Crowell, Madee Roman, Lorah Thomas, Ryann Lape, Ana Andrades-Villa, and Jordyn Vincent. 

Aleya Talmadge, Yasmin Berres, Kylie Rauch, Samantha Whitling, and Emmi Adrian all also made their collegiate debuts.  

Roman ended the night with 22 kills, six aces, and eight digs. 

Sappia finished with 45 assists and 21 digs. 

Thomas collected 11 kills, three assisted blocks, and a hitting percentage of .455 the first game.  

Head Coach Sara Spielvogel stated, "I'm very happy with today. We have a lot of freshmen who stepped up and played hard. We were tested in both matches and it was a great day for us developmentally. Both Alfred's were upper class heavy."

The Red Wolves return to action tomorrow, September 5, at 12 p.m and 2 p.m. Saint Francis will take on SUNY Poly and SUNY Morrisville on the road in Morrisville, N.Y. 

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