CAMBRIDGE, M.A. – The St. John Fisher College men's volleyball team took to the court Saturday night for its first ever United Volleyball Conference matchup versus #13 Vassar College as part of a UVC Crossover on the campus of Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The Cardinals fell to the number thirteen ranked Brewersin straight sets 12-25, 13-25, 22-25. Fisher falls to 6-5 overall and 0-1 in the UVC, while Vassar improves to 7-3 and 1-0 in the conference.

Vassar came out strong from the service line and were able to jump out to an early 17-5 lead to take the first set. Mike Strumpfler once again showed off his powerful serve, as the middle blocker put away three straight service aces to give the Cardinals some momentum midway through the second set. However the Brewers followed suit from the first set by being able to pull out to an early lead and take a two sets to none lead in the match.

The Cardinals however brought a lot of energy and fight in the third set. Fisher was able to take advantage from the service line as Ben De La Cruz rattled off a five point service run with three aces as Fisher took a 15-12 lead in the third set. Another five point Fisher run had the Cardinals up 20-15, until Vassar was able to rally back and take the third set and the match 22-25.

De La Cruz led the way for the Cardinals offensively finishing with six kills and five service aces, while Strumpfler added four and Matt Broderick put away two.

Paul Hackford notched 11 assists and two kills, while David Cerqua led the way defensively with five digs in the match.

The Cardinals are back in action at 1 p.m. on Sunday as they take on MIT in another UVC matchup from Cambridge, Massachusetts.