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Outside attacker Andrew Deardorff delivered in the critical moments to ensure Saint Francis would earn its biggest non-conference win of the season.
Deardorff had a game-winning ace in the second-game overtime and finished with a match-high 18 kills as Saint Francis swept George Mason 29-27, 26-24, 25-23 on Friday in Loretto, Pennsylvania.
Deardorff in the opening game had back-to-back kills to jumpstart the Red Flash fighting off four consecutive Patriots’ game-points to force overtime. The outside attacker also had a kill to fend off another George Mason game-point in overtime before Saint Francis rallied to win the game.
Along with first-game performance, Deardorff led all players with nine kills in the second game.
Saint Francis in the victory out-hit .318 to .247 and two players with both double-digit kills and more than a .350 attack percentage.
Deardorff did not commit an attack error until early in the second game and finished with a .395 attack percentage. In addition, outside attacker Brady Stump contributed 17 kills on a .467 attack percentage.
Pin-hitter Cole Dorn added eight kills, including back-to-back kills to close out the first-game overtime.
Libero Richard Kaminski defensively had a match-high 12 kills to help lead the Red Flash to their first win against an EIVA team this season.
George Mason outside attacker Robert Evangelista in the loss had a team-high nine kills.
This is the second time in the last nine meetings dating back to 2020 that Saint Francis has defeated George Mason. The Patriots also entered this match on a four-match winning streak.