LORETTO, Pa.- FDU Men's Volleyball (13-12, 7-5 NEC) fell in their regular season finale at SFU (16-11, 10-2 NEC). The Red Flash have already claimed the regular season title and will host the NEC Championships. The Knights claim the #2 seed in the bracket, and will play UMES for the third time this season.
Panagiotis Kourmouzos and
Laydon Biro made a splash early, Kourmouzos recorded the first point of the match, with him and Biro alternating scoring plays. Biro dished out a service act to give the Knights a 4-1 lead. SFU found scoring rhythm shortly after, however errors negated the Red Flash's momentum, as they continued to trail FDU 7-4.
Kourmouzos logged another kill to keep the Knights ahead 10-8.
Brandon Pho followed up the effort with a service ace immediately after entering the rotation. Following two errors and a kill by
John Petrucci, the Red Flash fought within three, 14-11. The home team picked up six of the next seven points to take a 17-15 lead.
The Red Flash held onto their lead with the score 19-17. FDU embarked on a five-point-run to retake the set, 22-19.
Jamal Ellis landed a kill and assisted Kormouzos on a block to start the run, with Biro recording another ace and McFadden punctuating the effort with a kill of his own. A lone service error disrupted the Knights' momentum as two opposing attacking errors ended the set in FDU's favor 25-20.
Trailing 4-2,
Vinil Shah landed the first FDU kill of the set. The Knights would tie the score at 6-6 off two more errors from SFU. The Red Flash reasserted themselves 9-6 after three quick points.
Petrucci helped the Knights cut the deficit to just two, 11-9, before SFU found six unanswered points to lead 17-9. The Knights could not bounce back despite multiple kills from Biro. The Red Flash ended the second set 25-17.
Biro helped the Knights tie the contest with two early kills. Petrucci and
Michael Ogorzalek pushed the Knights ahead 4-3. Miscues from SFU continued to benefit the Knights, who held onto a 10-9 lead. Shah kills bookended a service ace from Andrew Miachel to extend the lead 13-9.
The Red Flash string together two-point-bursts to overtake FDU 19-18. six of the final seven points went the way of the home team, ending the set 25-20 SFU.
Kills from
Eli Nelson and
Donald Smith helped the Knights spring in front 5-2 to begin the fourth set. With SFU closing in, Nelson landed two kills to extend the Knights lead 8-7.
Troy Markle provided key assists to keep the Knights within striking distance, as they tied the contest at 15-15. After retaking an 18-16 lead, errors by SFU allowed the Knights to tie the set once more. The Red Flash found their footing, with a six point run to halt any FDU momentum. The Knights fell in the final set 25-20.
FDU plays in the NEC Tournament for the third straight season, which will be hosted by SFU. The Knights play UMES on April 24 at 7 p.m. Coverage of the game will be on NEC Front Row and ESPN+. For updated coverage, see the NEC Men's Volleyball Championship
Headquarters.
