ANNANDALE-ON-HUDSON, N.Y. – Continuing a six-match stretch away from home, Saints men's volleyball earned a pair of straight set wins on Saturday afternoon over Vermont State Johnson and Bard from the Stevenson Athletic Center. The pair of wins moves the Saints to 11-8 on the year.

MATCH ONE: Emmanuel 3 – Vermont State Johnson 0 (25-14, 25-21, 25-18)

The Saints played their best set in terms of kills and efficiency in the opening frame, combining for 14 team kills while hitting .323 from the floor on the way to the 25-14 win. Emmanuel started the set with 10 of the opening 13 points to take an early 10-3 lead. Johnson State never got closer than five, as the Saints capped off the set with a kill by first-year Eric Barcelos in a 25-14 set win.

The Badgers flipped the momentum in set two, starting the frame on a 9-3 run, forcing the Saints into a comeback to win the set. Emmanuel would use an 11-4 run to overtake VTSU-Johnson and lead 14-13. The Saints didn't surrender the lead from that point as they held off a late charge by the Badgers to claim a 25-21 set win.

In the third, both sides battled for momentum until the turning point of the straight sets sweep came near the end of the match. Tied 17-17, Emmanuel rattled off six consecutive points, including a pair of aces by senior Maximilian Olsen and kills by seniors Louis Da Silva and Jyles Amirault, helping the Saints to a 23-17 lead. After an Olsen error, Emmanuel would close out the set with back-to-back points in the 25-18 win.

Saints senior Thor Yingling finished with a season-high nine kills while hitting .368 from the floor. Sophomore Cayson Branconier added six kills while Da Silva and Amirault chipped in with five kills each.

For the Badgers, Io Binder had a team-high nine kills to go with a .263 attack percentage. Luke Walters added seven kills and a match-high 11 digs.

MATCH TWO: Emmanuel 3 – Bard 0 (25-18, 27-25, 25-20)

Tied 15-15 in the opening frame, the Saints and Raptors were engaged in a back-and-forth scoring battle. The breakthrough finally came following a 6-0 surge by Emmanuel, including a pair of kills by junior Michael Shelley, to give the Saints a 21-15 lead. The visitors coasted to the finish line in the opening set, camping the 25-18 win on a kill by Da Silva.

Scoring runs dominated the start of the second set before Emmanuel and Bard began trading points through the middle of the set. The second set required extra points for the Saints while they also fended off a set point chance for the Raptors. After trailing 24-23 and defending the set point, Emmanuel proceeded to take the second set 27-25 thanks to a kill by Trey Guest and a Bard attack error.

In the third, the Saints again used scoring runs to take control, opening the set with a 17-7 run to lead by 10. The Raptors pushed back later in the frame, using a five-point stretch to cut the deficit down to four at 22-18. But the Emmanuel lead was too large to overcome and on their third match point attempt, Emmanuel took another straight sets win thanks to a final kill by Guest.

Shelley finished with 13 kills while hitting .333 from the floor in the win. Amirault posted eight kills for the Saints while Guest chipped in with seven kills and five digs. First-year Nathan Sierra-Suan finished with a double-double on career-highs of 31 assists and 11 digs.

Bard's Ansel Waisler matched Shelley with 13 kills to go along with a team-high three aces. Sidney Stein added 11 kills and six digs while Pearse Esposito ended the afternoon with seven kills.

Emmanuel returns to play next Saturday, March 15, with another tri-match on the schedule as they will face St. John Fisher and SUNY Polytechnic, hosted by SUNY Poly.