Men's Volleyball | 3/24/2023 12:10:00 PM

PITTSFORD, NY – The No. 8 St. John Fisher University men's volleyball team (19-5, 2-2 UVC) are gearing up for another exciting week of action. Led by head coach Matt Cohen, the Cardinals will look to move their current win-streak to what would be a season high eight straight shall they beat conference rival No. 11 SUNY New Paltz (17-8, 3-1 UVC).
 
The Cardinals will host the Hawks on Saturday, March 25 at 1 p.m. in the Manning & Napier Varsity Gymnasium. With the support of the club Athlete to Athlete, the Cardinals contest will also seek to bring awareness to athlete mental health, as fans are encouraged to wear green.
 
Scouting the Opponents
 
These teams have met seven times, with the Cardinals being credited with three wins. With New Paltz won the regular season matchup 3-0 last season, Fisher came back to best the Hawks in a thrilling five-set victory to claim the UVC Championship last season.
 
In the win, Josh Bigford and Jake Baker each ended with 18 kills, pacing the team to their 0.298% (47 kills, 11 errors, 121 attempts). Fisher was able to find success at the net, with Matt Beiter and Griffin Stella using six blocks each, as part of the Cardinals 14 block performance.
 
Also of note in the win were both teams struggles from the service line. While the Cardinals totaled just three aces to 23 errors, New Paltz ended with four aces and 24 errors.
 
Expect that to change in this upcoming matchup, as New Paltz leads the conference steadily in service aces, being credited with 180 aces across 99 sets, good for a 1.82 ace per set ratio. The Cardinals rank third in the conference, recording 161 across 98 sets, a 1.64 ace per set ratio.
 
The Hawks are a strong team on both sides of the ball, ranking second in the UVC in hitting percentage at 0.302% (1171 kills, 409 errors across 2524 attempts), and second in opponent kills, allowing just 919 kills across the 99 sets played, or 9.28 kills per set. The Cardinals rank third and seventh in those categories, respectively.
 
UVC Implications
 
The Cardinals currently sit in fourth place in the UVC Conference, behind Vassar, New Paltz, and NYU. The Cardinals have suffered losses to Vassar and NYU this season, but will look to redeem themselves and make up ground in the standings this week. Meanwhile, the Hawks are coming off a four-set loss to Vassar Wednesday night, moving their conference record to 3-1.
 
With a win, the Cardinals could clinch a postseason berth, which would be their fifth consecutive postseason appearance (excluding 2020 season, which was canceled for COVID-19 pandemic).
 
Fisher finished second in the regular season standings last season after posting a 5-2 record. New Paltz won the regular season conference and played host for the UVC championships last season after posting a 7-0 conference record.
 
Player to Watch
 
One player to keep an eye on this week is Jake Baker, who has been named the player of the week to watch. Baker, a junior outside hitter from Burnt Hills, has been a force for the Cardinals this season, ranking third in the team in kills at 141 averaging 2.47 kills per set. Additionally, Baker has been a key contributor on both offense and defense, recording 71 digs and 27.0 blocks so far this season.
 
With Baker and Bigford leading the charge, this week's matchup is an exciting game you won't want to miss.  
 
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