UNION, N.J. – The Marymount (Va.) University men's volleyball team continued day two of the Clash at Kean, where they faced No. 3 Nazareth College followed by host Kean University Saturday afternoon.  The Saints fell to No. 3 Nazareth (25-19, 25-23, 25-22) before outlasting the Cougars in a five-set thriller (23-25, 25-16, 25-22, 25-27, 15-13). 

Marymount vs. Nazareth

Marymount took the early 1-0 lead over Nazareth after seeing an early service error from Nazareth's Jake Kemp. The Saints continued trading points with the Golden Flyers until going down 7-3. Marymount took an early timeout and came back out swinging with a kill from sophomore Ben Steranka. The Saints continued to battle back after seeing kills from sophomore Connor Choate and freshman Eric Wiles, eventually hitting a late run with back-to-back kills by TJ Wiechecki and junior Tomasz Ksiazkiewicz, but it wouldn't be enough as the set ended 25-19 in favor of Nazareth.

The Saints took another 1-0 lead after sophomore Erich Bratke started the set with an ace. The second set however, proved to be another tough battle for the Saints after trading points most of the way with the Golden Flyers. After going down by three, the Saints brought it back within one after back-to-back kills by Wiles and Ksiazkiewicz. Marymount stayed within two points the rest of the match before falling short, 25-23. Wiechecki led the offense with five kills in the second set while Choate, Ksiazkiewicz and Wiles all added three kills apiece.

In the third set, the Golden Flyers struck first taking an early 3-0 lead. The Saints, however, answered with two kills from Ksiazkiewicz along with two errors by Nazareth. Marymount was forced to take a timeout after trailing 8-3, but came out of the timeout forcing a service error followed by a kill by Wiechecki. The Saints continued to trail before making one last effort late in the set. MU capitalized on several Golden Eagles errors in addition to kills from Wiles and Wiechecki to get within four, but the set finished with the Golden Eagles on top, 25-21. Wiechecki posted an impressive five kills yet again in the third set to lead the Saints.

Wiechecki finished the match with 15 kills followed by Ksiazkiewicz, who finished with eight. Bratke led the Saints in assists after racking up 36 in the match. Choate led the defense with eight digs and added six kills.

Marymount vs. Kean

The Saints continued the day by taking on Kean in their second match. The first set started with a block by Ksiazkiewicz before both teams traded points throughout the set. MU trailed late, 22-18, before making an impressive comeback. Steranka, Wiechecki, Bratke, and Wiles all added a kill for the Saints in the last few points of the set. Kean would be forced to take a timeout after the Saints cut the deficit to two, 23-21. The Cougars managed to outlast the Saints' late efford, finishing the set 25-23.

Wiechecki got the offense started for the Saints in the second set with an early kill to take the 1-0 lead. Marymount held onto that advantage, never allowing Kean to lead throughout the set. The Saints biggest run put them up 11-5 after kills by Wiles, Ksiazkiewicz and Wiechecki.  MU would go on to lead by as much as nine points after piecing together small runs before finishing the set 25-16. Wiechecki continued to standout, leading the Saints again offensively, registering six kills in the set.

The fourth set started with a kill from Steranka to give the Saints another 1-0 lead for the game. Most of the set consisted of trading points with 10 ties and six lead changes occurring during the set. Marymount trailed a majority of the time before tying the game at 17-17 following back-to-back kills from Bratke and Wiechecki. With the score wading back and forth, Kean was forced to take a timeout when the game was tied at 25 all, which played out in its favor, coming out for the final two points for the 27-25 decision to send it to a deciding set.

Marymount came out swinging to take an early 6-0 lead in the fifth set. Wiechecki added another two kills for the Saints and Steranka put up a wall at the net with back-to-back blocks. The blue and white would go on to finish the set and match 15-13. Wiles led the offense in the set with three kills.

Wiechecki finished the match with 27 kills to lead the Saints followed by Wiles, who finished with 10. Bratke added another 53 assists for the Saints, while sophomore Albert Johansson finished with 25 digs on the defensive end.

The men will continue on the road to begin Continental Volleyball Conference play, taking on the Tomcats of Thiel College on Friday, February 5. First serve is set for 7 p.m., in Greenville, Pennsylvania.