Mastodons Bounce Back with Win Over Saint Francis

Saturday, January 18

Loretto, Pa.

7 p.m.

Purdue Fort Wayne

3-1

Saint Francis (Pa.)

1-1

IPFW

Saint Francis

Mastodons Bounce Back with Win Over Saint Francis

1/18/2014 9:55:00 PM | Men's Volleyball

Box Score

BOX SCORE | BOX SCORE (.pdf) | BOX SCORE (.html)

LORETTO, Pa. – After suffering their first loss of the 2014 campaign Friday night, the 14th ranked IPFW men's volleyball team bounced back with a four set victory (25-16, 25-21, 22-25, 25-19) over Saint Francis on Saturday to wrap up their weekend road swing.

Andrew Sellan and Jeremy Swartz had 11 kills each to lead the way while Omar Rivera handed out 36 assists. Elon Fyfield and Sellan had two aces each as the Mastodons recorded six aces on the night.

In addition to his impressive offensive performance, Swartz was also a force on the defensive side, finishing the match with five blocks. Eddie Rivera and Omar Rivera added eight digs apiece.

The 'Dons came storming out of the gate hitting a blistering .481 in the opening set. Swartz had five kills in the frame, including the first three for IPFW. The Mastodons held a slim 6-5 edge before breaking it wide open with a 14-5 run en route to taking the set 25-16.

The IPFW offense was clicking on all cylinders again in set two, hitting at a .435 clip with 11 kills against just one error. Swartz was the go-to guy again in the set, hammering down five kills in the stanza. Saint Francis was able keep up with the 'Dons potent offense, though, and kept things close throughout the set. Neither team led by more than two until the final points when the Mastodons were able to capitalize on a couple Red Flash errors, and Bryan Saunders pounded home a kill to win the set 25-21.

The third set was also back and forth early, but Saint Francis tallied four straight points to take a 14-10 advantage. The Mastodons rallied back, cutting the deficit to one, 22-21, but the Red Flash were able to hold off the late charge.

After IPFW took a quick 6-3 lead in set four, Saint Francis rallied back to tie the score 9-9. However, the Red Flash were not able to overcome eight miscues in the frame, including the two final points of the match, and the 'Dons came away with the victory.

On the night, IPFW had 49 kills compared to 47 by Saint Francis, and hit at a .371 clip while limiting the Red Flash to .250.

The Mastodons return to action on Friday, January 31 when they welcome Ball State to the Gates Sports Center to open conference play. First serve is set for 7 p.m.

~ Feel the Rumble ~