Flames fall to Wolfpack 3-1 in last match of regular season, finish 1-3 in Liberty Arena

Four days removed from its 3-1 victory over UNC Chapel Hill in its annual Midnight Mayhem match, Liberty University's DI men's volleyball team fell by a 3-1 count (25-19, 23-25, 25-18, 25-19) to ECVA South rival North Carolina State on Tuesday night at the Liberty Arena.

Flames Head Coach Josh Knapp attributed the loss in part to the quick turnaround from the team's late-night contest over the weekend.

Zach Kill — Sophomore Zach Lamoureux recorded 11 kills for the Flames. (Photo by Ryan Anderson)

"Back-to back play is always tough," he said. "We practiced yesterday and had our lift, so we were back in the flow of things. That transfer of sleep, classes, and the college life brings a hinderance on that mental turnaround. It was just a case of not performing on the court. Sometimes there are days that that happens."

The Flames' final match of the regular season was highlighted by struggles from the service line as well as errors on the attack. Liberty finished with 14 service errors against three service aces and 33 attack errors against 47 kills.

"One of our big identities is tough service pressure," Knapp said. "We saw that in the midnight game where we owned them from the service line, and we were just not making those (tonight). We had six missed serves in that first set and that's just too many to give away to the other team. So, we tried to get a little more balls in play and clean up the play all around."

The first set started slowly, with each team scoring four of the first eight points, however, the Wolfpack quickly took control with a three-point run for a 7-4 advantage. Although Liberty managed to bring the deficit to one point several times, it could never find the equalizer in the six-point setback.

The Flames responded to the early setback by winning a back-and-forth second set sparked on attack by freshman outside hitter Anthony Bernardo. Liberty held a lead for the entire set, which was punctuated by a Bernardo kill for a narrow 25-23 victory.

"(Bernardo) has been doing really well," Knapp said. "He's super athletic and has a great swing. We are constantly working on finding his mental capacity on the court with him being one of the offensive leaders on our team while being so young. That's a big burden to bear in a program. He does a great job of keeping the pressure at the net and being a big weapon for us."

Freshman outside Anthony Bernardo scored 11 kills for the Flames. (Photo by Aziz Ibrahim)

In the third game, the Flames once again kept the score close in the early going before the Wolfpack broke it open with a three-point run for a 10-7 lead. N.C. State held Liberty at bay for the rest of the set, with its advantage reaching as high as eight points. A late four-point run by the Flames proved too little, too late, and N.C. State cruised to a 25-18 win to regain the match advantage.

As the matched progressed, Knapp began tweaking the lineup as well as switching up setters to try to gain momentum.

"We have a few different lineups that we're able to run," he said. "It just came down to what we had on the court clearly wasn't working from the outcome of our sets and our hitters. So, making that change and hoping to find a little more change, a little more traction, and a little bit more pressure against that team to see what matches up best against them."

The fourth game was similar to the third, with the Wolfpack building an early lead to prevent the Flames from forcing a decisive fifth set. Trailing 24-15, Liberty's last-gasp effort was a four-point run highlighted by two kills by senior middle Jared Vazquez. A costly net violation on the attack ended the Flames' desperation comeback bid.

Despite the loss, Knapp said that he appreciated the team's willingness to continue fighting at the end of the match and he hopes the team can carry that same fire into the postseason.

"We love seeing the guys respond, even in a moment that is almost hopeless with our backs against the wall at game point," he said. "That run was pushing us mentally. I told the guys in the huddle that we can decide how we want to go out. We're not going to win these matches by being timid. We have to swing hard, serve heavy, keep communicating, and make sure that that ball doesn't touch the ground."

Bernardo and sophomore opposite hitter Zach Lamoureux led the Flames in kills with 11 each, followed closely by senior opposite hitter Tyler Wemple close with 10. Sophomore outside hitter Zachary Bell recorded two of the team's three service aces.

As the regular season draws to a close, the Flames now prepare for the ECVA South Championship on March 23 in Harrisonburg, Va., followed by the April 6 East Coast Championships at State College, Pa., which will finalize the seedings for the April 18-20 NCVF National Championships in Kansas City, Mo.

"We're looking at changes and getting our offense set up a little more comfortably," Knapp said. "We made a few lineup changes a week ago, so we're still working through new hitters and finding their footing on different pins. We're looking to smooth out those areas and peak at those right points."

By Christian Shields/Staff Writer

Flames fall to Wolfpack 3-1 in last match of regular season, finish 1-3 in Liberty Arena

Players Mentioned

Zachary Bell

Anthony Bernardo

Jared Vazquez

Tyler Wemple

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