HAMILTON – The Colgate volleyball team rallied from a 2-1 deficit to force a fifth set against Loyola Saturday afternoon at Cotterell Court, but the Greyhounds claimed the decisive term 15-11 to hand the Raiders a 3-2 loss.
Colgate got out to a fast 7-1 start in the opening set with the help of two
Peighton McRobie services aces and kills from junior
Katie Stansbury and sophomore
Taylor Flaherty. Loyola pulled within four at 8-4, but Colgate rattled off a 7-1 streak to pull ahead 15-5 and force a Greyhounds timeout. The Raiders held onto at least a nine-point lead the rest of the way before a kill from junior
Jaelah Hutchison capped off the dominant 25-9 set-one win.
The second set was much closer as Colgate clung to a slim 11-9 lead early on. Loyola answered with the next four points to pull ahead 13-11 and force a Raider timeout. The Greyhounds were in later in front 19-16 before a kill from first-year
Alli Lowe sparked a 3-0 Colgate streak to knot the score at 19 and force a Loyola timeout. The teams were still tied at 22, but Loyola put up the final three points of the set to even the match at 1-1 with a 25-22 set-two victory.
The Greyhounds carried their momentum into the third set, jumping out to an early 6-1 lead. Colgate battled back to pull within two at 10-8, but Loyola embarked on a 9-4 streak to stretch its lead to 19-12. The Raiders were never able to recover as the Greyhounds earned a 25-17 win to take a 2-1 match advantage.
Two kills from Flaherty helped Colgate turn a 7-6 lead into a 10-6 advantage early on in the fourth set. The Greyhounds rallied to quickly tie the score at 11, but five-straight Raider points forced a Loyola timeout as the Raiders surged ahead 16-11. Colgate extended its lead to as much as seven at 21-14 and Loyola wouldn't get closer than four the rest of the way as Lowe smacked a kill to end the 25-19 set-four win.
Loyola scored the first point of the fifth and decisive set, but the Raiders tallied the next three to force an early Greyhounds timeout. Loyola answered with a 6-1 run, however, to pull in front 7-4. Kills from three different Raiders helped Colgate claw back to tie the score at 8-8, but the Greyhounds tallied five of the next six points to put Colgate in a 13-9 hole. The Raiders couldn't claw back this time as the Greyhounds clinched the match with a 15-11 set-five win.
BOTTOM LINE
- Loyola 3, Colgate 2 (25-9, 22-25, 17-25, 25-19, 11-15)
WON-LOST RECORDS
- Loyola earns its second-straight win after defeating Army last night. The Greyhounds are now 8-9 on the season and 2-2 in league play.
- The Raiders fall to 9-7 overall and 0-4 in league play.
KEY RAIDER INFO
- Lowe led the team with 17 kills, while Flaherty added a career-best 14.
- First-year Bridget Kolsky registered a team-best 29 digs.
- Senior Lauren Sanderson tallied another double-double with 35 assists and 12 digs.
- Hutchison chipped in 11 kills and eight total blocks.
FACTS & FIGURES
- The Raiders hit .226 as a team and limited the Greyhounds to a .127 clip.
- Colgate held a 13-9 team total blocks advantage.
- The Raiders were hindered by 11 service errors.
UP NEXT
- Colgate hits the road next weekends for a pair of matches at Army West Point and Holy Cross.
- The Raiders take on the Black Knights at 7 p.m. Friday before facing Holy Cross at 6 p.m. Saturday.