The #6-ranked New York University men's volleyball team was feeling the love as they celebrated Tear It Up! day with a 3-1 win over St. John Fisher College on Saturday, February 14, at the John A. Paulson Center in Manhattan. 

After falling in the first set, 23-25, the Violets battled back with decisive victories in the next three, 25-20, 25-16, 25-17.

"Our defense picked up and we played pretty decently today. When you have talent on the floor, if you do the things, if you execute the game plan, you're going to play well," said Head Coach Jose Pina. 

Set one was tied 12 times, with the lead changing five times to keep the match close. A late 4-0 run for the Cardinals gave them the largest lead by three which they held onto to take the first set. 

The second set started in similar fashion with both teams trading points until the Violets had a 7-2 scoring run, led by Emerson Evans, to give them an 11-7 advantage. From there they never trailed. 

In the third set, the Violets scored six quick unanswered points with Matthew Warter collecting a service ace. At 10-8, NYU went on a 7-0 run. A kill from Charlie Clifford sealed the third set for the Violets. 

NYU led for much of the final set, taking a quick lead over the Cardinals. Already up by six, back-to-back kills from Clifford, an ace from Cade Miller, and a kill from Devyn Nguyen pushed the Violets past the 20-point mark. BoJameson Ebeling ended the set with a decisive kill to secure the victory. 

Evan led with 21 kills, Clifford followed with 15, and Artyom Derkach added six kills and three aces.  Veer Agerwal led the defensive efforts with four blocks.