PITTSFORD, N.Y. – For the first time in its two-year history, the St. John Fisher College men's volleyball team will compete for a conference title as the third-seeded Cardinals are set to take on the sixth-seeded Vassar College Brewers at 7:30 p.m. on Friday in the second UVC quarterfinal. The six-team playoff will take place in Caldwell, N.J. on the campus of Caldwell University and will be hosted by the top-seeded Stevens Institute of Technology. The winners of both quarter-final matches on Friday will advance to Saturday's semifinal matches versus the second-seeded New Paltz Hawks and the top overall seed, Stevens.  
 
Fans unable to make the trip east to New Jersey can follow all the weekend's action live at the links below:
  It's Only Year Two: This is the second season since the men's volleyball program was announced, however, this year's team has exceeded all expectations. Ranked eighth in the pre-season UVC poll, Fisher finished the season with a 20-12 overall record as well as a 7-2 mark in conference play to earn the third seed overall. The Cardinals racked up a 12-match winning streak midway through the season and only dropped a total of six sets throughout the streak.
 
The Freshman Sensation: Josh Bigford has been unstoppable all year long for the Cardinals as the freshman finished the regular season ranking second in the conference with 395 total kills, while also ranking third in both kills per set (3.56) and points per set (4.00). The Cicero native was named the UVC Rookie of the Week a whopping six times and was also named the College's Male Athlete of the Week twice. 
 
Sharing The Wealth: Including Bigford, five Cardinals surpassed the 150 total kills mark in the regular season as Matt Broderick, Mike Strumpfler, Andres Ramirez, and Ivan Lopez all were major contributors on the offensive end. As a team, Fisher led the conference with 1,418 total kills, while also leading the way in total assists with 1,397 at 10.98 per set. Paul Hackford has quarterbacked the Cardinal offense as the sophomore has posted 899 assists thus far, which ranks him third overall in the UVC. Libero David Cerqua also leads the conference in total digs as the sophomore notched 301 throughout the regular season. 
 
Is That A Brick Wall?: As a team, Fisher was sensational at the net throughout the regular season as the Cardinals topped the UVC with 268.5 total blocks. Lopez led the way as the 6'5 freshman ranks third in NCAA Division III with 124 total blocks and 1.13 per set. Three other Cardinals surpassed the 50 total blocks mark, including Bigford, Hackford, and Strumpfler. 
 
Scouting Vassar: The Brewers earned the sixth overall seed after finishing the regular season with a 14-14 overall record and 5-4 in UVC play. Fisher came out victorious over Vassar in four sets when the two teams met just a few weeks back on March 30^thon Bobby Wanzer. Kevin Ros and Jefferson Waters have led the Brewers offensive this season, totaling 148 and 143 kills respectively in 28 matches played. This year marks the eighth time overall and fifth straight time that Vassar will participate in the conference's postseason tournament. 

Scouting New Paltz: The No. 9 Hawks earned the second seed overall and will take on the winner of the Fisher and Vassar matchup on Saturday at 5 p.m. New Platz capped off another impressive regular season with a 22-7 overall record, while finishing 8-1 in the UVC standings. It's only conference defeat came in a five-set thriller to the No. 2 Stevens on March 27^th. The Hawks enter postseason play with a four-match winning streak and currently lead the conference with 12.94 kills per set. New Paltz is one of only two programs in the conference to qualify for its postseason tournament every season since 2011.  
 
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