PATCHOGUE, N.Y. (January 15, 2023)  – Senior Percy Bickford totaled 27 kills across two matches as No. 4 Stevens Institute of Technology men's volleyball defeated St. John Fisher University and St. Joseph's College of Long Island Sunday in a tri-match hosted by the Golden Eagles at the Danzi Athletic Center. 

First-year Phillip Bone had 10 kills and eight kills against the Cardinals as the Ducks won their opener in four sets (19-25, 25-13, 25-12, 25-18). In the nightcap, sophomore Koby Sherman had seven kills and junior Phu-Quy Ho had a career-high 10 digs as the Ducks swept St. Joseph's (25-19, 25-21, 25-22) to close play with a 3-0 record, marking the fourth time in five seasons that the Ducks have opened the schedule with three (or more) straight wins. The victory over the Golden Eagles ran the Ducks' record to 6-0 in the all-time series, while Stevens has won all three all-time matchups with the Cardinals. 

Gabe La Robardiere had eight kills to pace St. John Fisher, who topped St. Joseph's in the first match of the day to conclude play 3-1. Tyler Anderson had 10 kills to pace St. Joseph's, who closed play 0-2.

Bickford was outstanding in the come-from-behind victory over the Cardinals. The Santa Monica, California native set down 14 kills on 18 swings, with just one error (.722 hitting percentage). Bickford had three kills in the first set, four each in the second and third sets and three more in the final set.

After Fisher won the opening set with a .435 hitting percentage, the Ducks clamped down and nearly forced the Cardinals into as many kills (19) and errors (18) across the remaining three sets. Conversely, the Ducks increased their attack percentage in the second and third sets, culminating with a .435 (12-2-23) performance in the third set.

Down a set, the Ducks jumped on the Cardinals early in the second. Senior Chris Varseveld put the Ducks on the board after setting down a set from classmate Louden Moran. The point sparked a 5-1 run that saw the Ducks take a 5-2 lead. The Ducks would maintain their advantage before a 7-0 run pushed the lead to 21-10 and a 4-0 run closed out the frame.

After evening the match, the Ducks jumped in from early in the third set. Bickford knocked down a Moran set and then served up an ace as the Ducks reeled off five of the first seven points to jump in front. The teams alternated points into the middle portion of the set, but the Ducks broke the set open with seven straight points to take a commanding 19-8 lead. For the second straight set, the Ducks used a four-point run to close out the frame.

In the final set, St. John Fisher jumped in front on a pair of Stevens errors, but the Ducks reeled off six straight points to jump in front that featured points from three different players, punctuated by a solo block from Sherman. Fisher would pull back within one at 10-9, but the Ducks went on a five-point run to extend their lead to six and then closed out the victory by scoring four of the final five points with Moran feeding Varseveld for a kill to cement the win.

Against St. Joe's, it was again Bickford pacing the offense with 13 kills on 25 swings and Ho paced the defense with 10 digs. The Ducks hit a match-high .393 in the opening set and held the Golden Eagles to just .116 for the match. 

Although the hosts won the first point of the match, Stevens subsequently went on a 7-1 run to take control of the set. Bone and Sherman recorded two kills during the stretch and the Ducks would never relinquish. A four-point swing pushed the lead to 21-16 and a Varseveld kill and a St. Joe's error closed out the set.

The second set saw Stevens take an early lead on the strength of three errors. The Golden Eagles drew even at five, the Ducks would go on a 5-1 run to jump back in front for good. Bickford recorded a block and a kill in the stretch and the run was also keyed by three St. Joe's errors. The Ducks continued to hold a slim lead throughout the frame and Varseveld closed out with a kill to put the Ducks up two sets to none.

In the final set, the Ducks again jumped in front early. Senior Alex Franke set down a pass from graduate student Colin Nikc to open the scoring and the Ducks would score five of the first six points in the frame to take early control. After the hosts drew even at 11, three errors and a kill from first-year Tyler Hoke gave the Ducks a 15-12 lead and forced a timeout. Consecutive Hoke kills and a block from Franke pushed the lead to 23-18. A four-point swing by St. Joe's forced a Duck timeout, but Bickford set down a Nikc pass and an ace from sophomore Hunter Schmidt closed out the sweep.
 
Inside the Numbers

• The Ducks served up eight aces against St. John Fisher, with Moran leading the efforts with three. They followed that up with another six against the Golden Eagles, with Varseveld serving up three to lead the efforts.
• Moran dished out 41 assists against Fisher and another 25 against the Golden Eagles. He produced a double-double against the Cardinals by also defending 13 digs, finishing one shy of a career high.
• The Ducks finished with an 8-4 edge in aces against St. John Fisher and a 6-2 edge against St. John Fisher.
• Three Ducks: Moran, Varseveld and senior Connor Feulner, finished with three blocks against St. John Fisher. Varseveld added another two against St. Joe's.

Up Next

• No. 4 Men's Volleyball heads to Fairfield, Connecticut for a matchup with Sacred Heart University (Division I). 
• The Ducks won the last meeting between the teams, topping the Pioneers in five sets in 2016. The victory snapped Sacred Heart's two-match winning streak in the all-time series.
• Links for live stats and video are posted to StevensDucks.com.

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