TROY, NY – The St. John Fisher University men's volleyball team (22-6, 3-3 UVC) dominated the Northern Vermont University Johnson Badgers (12-8) and the Russell Sage Gators (6-27) Saturday afternoon to conclude regular season play for the Cardinals.
 
The tune up for the upcoming UVC Championship helped the Cardinals move to winners of nine of their last ten matches, dating back to a 3-0 win over Hilbert College on March 4.
 
Cardinals 3, Badgers 0
 
The Cardinals quickly opened a lead in the first set, up 10-6, before using kills from Ian Rauh and Zach Ciraolo to move the lead to 17-13. The Cardinals would go on to win set one 25-17.
 
In the second set, kills from Josh Bigford, Gabe La Robardiere, and Jimmy Roberts helped Fisher extend a comfortable lead, eventually taking the set 25-14.
 
Using nine kills in the third set, the Cardinals would win 25-9.
 
Ian Rauh was credited with seven kills in the win as the Cardinals would clip 0.435 in game one, using a 33 kill attack in the win.
 
Cardinals 3, Gators 0
 
The Cardinals would strike early and often in the first set, setting the tone with two aces from Gavin Newman. With the score 8-4, Graham Brodsky would be credited with a kill to move the lead to five. Using an 8-3 run to move the score to 17-7, Fisher would force the first timeout of the set from the Gators. Out of the timeout, rookie Casey Jackson took care of business from the service line, propelling the Cardinals to the 25-8.
 
Gabe La Robardiere would deliver the Cardinals first kill of the second set. Using five straight errors, the Cardinals would extend the second set lead to 11-4. With the lead 22-12, a kill from Jimmy Roberts would be followed by an ace from Gavin Miller. At set point, Jackson would put down a kill to take the second set.
 
The Cardinals would get on the board in the third set with a kill from Owen Gardner. Down 6-1, Fisher would chip away to move the score to 12-10, before knotting the set at 12. An ace from Gardner would move the score to 13-12, the first lead of the set for the Cardinals. Later in the set, the Cardinals would use a kill from Aidan Calhoun to take the lead once more, up 18-17. After another point went in the Cardinals favor, Sage would take their first timeout. Two straight kills from Gardner and an ace from Calhoun iced the third set 25-19.
 
Brodsky and Gardner both ended with a match high seven kills a piece, as the team hit .410 in the victory. Following the win, senior Brodsky looked ahead, sharing that he "wants to continue to be there as a resource for the guys." When asked about planning for the return to the UVC Championship, Brodsky expressed his desire to focus on serving in upcoming practices: "I hope we put an emphasis on our serving, because that can be a strength for this team."
 
The Saturday matches gave an opportunity to look to the future, as many Cardinals set personal records. Against Sage, Calhoun reached a personal best 13 assists, Jack DeMaria added a career high three digs, Gardner tallied a record seven kills, and Dan Broberg registered three kills.
 
The Cardinals will seek to defend their title run on Friday, April 14, when they compete at Vassar College in the UVC quarterfinals against New York University, with first serve set for 7:30 p.m.
                                                                                                                                                                                           
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