HOBOKEN, N.J. (March 13, 2021) ­– In a matchup of two teams ranked inside the American Volleyball Coaches Association top-15, the Stevens Institute of Technology men's volleyball program dropped a pair of matches 3-2 and 3-1 against Messiah University Saturday inside Canavan Arena.

The Ducks, playing in their home opener for 2021 dropped the first match 20-25, 25-21, 25-18, 18-25, 12-15 and the second match 21-25, 18-25, 26-24, 20-25 to fall to 1-3 on the year while the Falcons went to 8-1.

Jack Fyda led the way offensively for Stevens with 13 total kills in both matches while producing a double-double with 14 digs to go along with four aces in the first match of the day. Percy Bickford also had double-digit kills in both matches as he produced 13 in the first and 10 in the second.

Stevens was unable to stop the Falcon offensive attack, specifically Mason Nissley who produced 35 kills in the first match and 27 in match number two.

By virtue of the five-set match in the first contest, the Ducks were able to salvage a point in the Middle Atlantic Conference scoring system, giving them three points on the year thus far.

Volleys and Points (Match One)

• The first set featured some high-quality volleyball as expected, with both teams trading points for nearly half of the opening stanza.
• Leading 15-14, Messiah rattled off three straight points that featured back-to-back service aces to extend the lead to four.
• The Falcons were able to keep Stevens at arms-length the rest of the way, winning set one 25-20.
• After Messiah raced out to a 5-1 lead in set two, the Ducks answered back with four straight points of their own thanks to kills from Chris Varseveld and Nathan Lancia as well as a Fyda service ace.
• Trailing 14-12 later in the set, Fyda added another ace to hit stat column as a part of a 4-0 run to give Stevens the lead.
• The Ducks then went on a quick 5-1 run that featured back-to-back Alex Franke service aces to make the score 23-18 and Fyda closed things out with a pair of kills to even the match at one.
• Early in the third, Stevens scored seven of eight points after falling behind to take a 9-4 edge.
• As the Falcons climbed back into the set at 14-11, the Ducks grabbed four straight points featuring kills by Stedman van Arsdale and Lancia as well as another Fyda service ace.
• Leading 21-18, Stevens put the contest away for good by scoring the final four points to win 25-18 and go ahead 2-1 in the match.
• With the score 5-2 in favor of Messiah early in set four, the Ducks scored six straight thanks in large part to three kills by Lancia to take an 8-5 edge.
• Behind 12-9, the Falcons went on a run of their own scoring seven of nine points to take a 16-14 lead.
• They were not done there as they closed the set on an 8-2 run to send the match to a decisive fifth set.
• The two teams traded points in the fifth until Messiah went on a 3-0 run after the set was tied at seven to create a cushion.
• Stevens never quite recovered from that moment as Nissley's 35th kill of the set clinched it 15-12 and 3-2.

Volleys and Points (Match Two)

• The second match started much like the first with neither team leading by more than three points until late in the set.
• Trailing 19-18, Messiah put together a 5-0 run that featured two Nissley kills to take a 23-19 lead.
• The Ducks tried to mount a comeback but were unsuccessful, falling 25-21.
• Set number two belonged to the Falcons from the first serve with Messiah jumping out to a 6-2 lead.
• After Stevens climbed back into it at 16-13, Messiah went on a 6-2 run to salt the set away, ultimately winning 25-18.
• Tied at 10 in the third, Fyda pulled Stevens ahead with back-to-back kills as a part of a 3-0 mini-run.
• Messiah pulled back to even at 20-20 later in the set with four consecutive points and threatened to sweep the match.
• Trailing 24-23 with one set point, Bickford and Zachary Evans ensured that wouldn't happen as they combined to score three straight to win 26-24 and push the match to a fourth set.
• Neither team took control of the fourth until halfway through when Messiah scored five straight thanks to four Stevens errors to take a 19-15 lead.
• The Falcons made sure a fifth set was not needed just a few points later, scoring four straight with the score 20-17 to pull out a 25-20 set win and a 3-1 match victory.

Inside the Numbers (Both Matches)

• Messiah combined to hit .326 as a team in the first match and .342 in match number two while holding Stevens to .224 and .153 in matches one and two, respectively.
• Louden Moran was the Ducks' primary setter throughout both matches. The sophomore had a 30-assist, 12-dig double-double in match one and followed it up with 37 assists and eight digs in match two.
• Stevens held the edge at the service line with 12 aces compared to 10 for Messiah.
• Defense at the net was big for the Falcons as they out-blocked the Ducks 14-8 in match one and 10-3 in the second.
• Making his collegiate debut, Phu-Quy Ho had eight digs in the first match and a team-high nine in match number two.
• Neither team helped themselves with service errors and Messiah combined for 43 service errors on the day and Stevens totaled 27.

From the Sidelines (Head Coach Dan Buehring)

• "We need to work harder to prepare for the challenges and opportunities these matches are presenting. Give credit to our opponents. They are bringing an incredible fighting spirit to the floor and we need to not match that but exceed our opponent's will to win. We are going to need to dig a little deeper to get wins against teams like Messiah who are playing great right now. We look forward to growing into these challenges as the season continues."

Next Up

• Originally scheduled on Feb. 24 and March 3, Stevens will finally take on Eastern University in a doubleheader on the road in St. David's, Pa., at 5:00 and 7:00 p.m. Tuesday night.
• The Ducks swept Eastern in the first meeting between the two schools a season ago.
• Live stats and video will be available on StevensDucks.com.

 
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