Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 CAMBRIDGE, MA – Nazareth recorded a pair of victories at MIT on Saturday afternoon. The Golden Flyers defeated 20th-ranked MIT in four sets in a UVC match then outlasted SUNY Poly in five sets in a non-conference contest.
 
Following the matches, the Golden Flyers stand at 12-8 overall and 2-1 in conference matches. After its loss to Nazareth, MIT dropped to 9-8 overall and 0-4 in UVC matches. SUNY Poly fell to 11-8 overall. Nazareth defeats MIT in 4 sets (25-23, 24-26, 25-21, 25-18)
 
In the opening set against the Engineers, the Golden Flyers used a 7-2 scoring run to change a 10-8 deficit to a 15-12 lead. Owen Wickens ignited the run with a pair of kills, followed by a pair of kills by Max Stuver. The run included two kills from Ryan Murphy, an ace from Wickens, then Andrew Bodensteiner capped the run with a kill. Nazareth maintained the lead until it claimed the set on a MIT hitting error.
 
After surrendering the first four points of the second set, the Golden Flyers battled to tie the score, 16-16, after an assisted block by Josh Weaver and Bodensteiner. Nazareth scored the next two points to take an 18-16 lead. The Engineers, however, rallied with their own run to claim a 23-20 lead, and they eventually prevailed 26-24.
 
Similar to the second set, the Golden Flyers started slowly in the third. After trailing 6-1 early, Nazareth tied the contest at 11 apiece. Following back-and-forth scoring, the Golden Flyers tallied six consecutive points to take control of the set, 23-19. Alex Bertino recorded a kill during the run, and the Engineers committed four attack errors.
 
Nazareth's defense stifled MIT in the fourth set as the Golden Flyers held the Engineers to a .071 hitting percentage. Nazareth, meanwhile, finished the set with a percentage of .294. The Golden Flyers took control of the match with four straight points to take a 13-9 lead. Bertino keyed the run with a service ace and kill. He finished the match with his ninth kill of the contest. Murphy finished with a team-high 12 kills. AJ Burda tallied a team-high 27 assists, and Bodey Groff recorded a match-high 10 digs.
 
Nazareth outlasts SUNY Poly in 5 sets (22-25, 25-11, 21-25, 28-26, 15-13)
In the pivotal fifth set, Nazareth took a 3-0 advantage following SUNY Poly hitting errors, but the Wildcats rallied to take a 6-5 edge. Neither team was able to pull away until Burda, Bertino, and Wickens strung together consecutive kills to give the Golden Flyers a 12-9 lead. Murphy secured the victory with Nazareth's final two kills.
 
After trading points early in the first set, the Wildcats tallied four points in a row to claim a 13-9 lead. After the Golden Flyers' deficit reached as many as six points, 16-10, Nazareth rallied with a 12-5 scoring run to go ahead, 22-21, following Tristan Henderson's kill. SUNY Poly, however, responded with the next four points to win the opening set.
 
The Golden Flyers' responded in the second set with a commanding performance to even the match. Nazareth finished the set with a .476 hitting percentage while holding the Wildcats to a - .036 percentage. The Golden Flyers used a 9-1 scoring run to take a 12-5 lead and maintained control for the remainder of the set. Bodensteiner, Gavin Sweet, and Quinn Ringstad each recorded a kill and the tandem of Bodensteiner and Ringstad had a pair of assisted blocks to stymie the SUNY Poly attack.
 
In the third set, the Golden Flyers rallied from a one-point deficit to take their largest lead of the set, 14-11, following four consecutive points. Joshua Warner started the run with a kill, followed by a kill from Bodensteiner, an ace by Anthony Caimano, and a kill from Bertino. Following a timeout, the Wildcats responded with the set-defining 10-3 scoring run to take a 21-17 advantage and pull away.
 
Nazareth trailed SUNY Poly through most of the fourth, including 21-18, before rallying to force a decisive fifth set. An assisted block by Burda and Murphy tied the contest at 22 points apiece. After trading points, the Golden Flyers took the set with a 4-1 scoring run. Bertino was unstoppable during the run with three kills, and Murphy added a service ace.
 
Bertino amassed 17 kills to lead all players. Wickens and Stuver recorded 34 assists and 18 assists, respectively, to direct Nazareth's attack. Additionally, Wickens finished with a team-high 12 digs, followed by Groff with 10 digs.
 
The Golden Flyers are in action again Friday, March 7th, when Nazareth hosts 6th-ranked Juniata in a non-conference match.