ROCHESTER, N.Y. (February 14, 2015)– The top-ranked Stevens Institute of Technology men's volleyball team knocked off Bard College and No. 7 Nazareth College in  United Volleyball Conference action Saturday afternoon.
  
The Ducks opened Saturday knocking off Bard College 25-10, 25-5, 25-10, before knocking off its third straight ranked Division III opponent, downing  Nazareth in four sets 25-23, 22-25, 25-22, 30-28. The second set loss against the Golden Flyers snapped Stevens 19-set winning streak against Division III opponents.

No. 1 Stevens 3, Bard College 0

The Raptors jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in the opening set but from then on it was all Ducks. Senior David Evans led the way with five kills in , while junior Chris Vaughan,  junior Alexander Carpenter, and Evans all had streaks of five points consecutive points to lead a balanced attack.
 
The second set was all Stevens with Evans rolling 12 straight points, including two aces  before Bard was able to break his serve. After a side-out, the Ducks registered the next three points,taking an 18-2 advantage. Carpenter and Evans combined to score the final three points with Carpenter serving up an ace and Evans registering two kills. The big difference was Stevens hit .611 in the middle set, compared to Bard hitting -.190.
 
The third set started the similarly to the second, where the Ducks again used two big runs to separate themselves from the Raptors. Freshman Cagan Friend served the first six points of the set, while sophomore Ian Bennett later runnign off eight straight points. The Raptors attempted to claw back into the match, but Vaughan and Evans again shut the door, with Evans recording an ace to end the match.
 
The Ducks hit .508 for the match with Evans recording 10 kills, and Vaughan adding seven kills to go along with nine digs. Senior setter Kevin Aeckerle dished out 16 assists in his return after missing the last five matches, while junior setter John Eddins registered 10 helpers in addition to tying the team lead with two block assists. The Raptors hit -.136 for the match with Kai Bernier-Chen and Joseph Stier contributing four kills apiece in the losing effort.

No. 1 Stevens 3, No. 7 Nazareth 1

The Ducks roared out to 5-1 lead in the opening set, with senior Ryan Seifert hammering home two kills. Stevens also received multiple kills from Evans and junior Tim Ferriter, stretching their advantage to 21-17. The Golden Flyers mounted a small rally near the end of the set, fending off three set points and cutting Stevens lead to 24-23. But Ferriter put the set away by smashing a kill.
 
The second set was a see-saw tilt, with neither side able to build a lead of more than three points. Trailing 23-22, the Ducks turned to Friend to help serve them back into the lead, but it was short-lived as Nazareth got a side-out. Stevens committed an attack error to knot the match up at one set each. The Ducks were outhit .290-.167 in this portion.
 
The third set was back and forth, with the teams trading the first six points. The Ducks opened up a 10-6 lead behind senior Daniel Smith serves, coupled with three Golden Flyer attack errors. Nazareth took a 14-13 lead, however Stevens battled back and led 24-21 after a Seifert service ace. Ferriter once again ended a set, for the 25-22 set win, and 2-1 lead in the match.
 
The fourth set saw Stevens fall behind 7-2. After a  timeout, Stevens rattled off the next three points, which was then erased by five point from Nazareth, making the score 12-5. Trailing for most of the set, the Ducks finally were able to knot the match up at 23, and then held off set point on a kill by Ferriter. Nazareth took a 27-26, but Smith and Evans each recorded kills to put the Ducks back in front. The teams traded the next few points with Smith hammering home a kill, giving the Ducks the victory.
 
Ferriter and Evans each finished with 15 kills for Stevens, who were outhit.319-.292 over the four sets, while . Aeckerle and Eddins split the setting duties, registering 22 and 26 assists respectively while Seifert posted a double of 10 kills and 10 digs. Nazareth was led by Grant Levermore who had 17 kills and 15 digs and Jake Kemp, who dished out 49 assists.
 
The Ducks return home to friendly confines of Canavan Arena Wednesday night to battle with UVC rival and no. 3 ranked SUNY New Paltz at 7 p.m.


 
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