BOSTON, Mass. — The Rivier women's volleyball team dropped a four-set battle to Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) foe Emmanuel (Mass.) Thursday evening at the Jean Yawkey Center.

With the loss, the Raiders fell to 14–13 (8-3 GNAC), while the Saints improved to 24–1 (10-0 GNAC)

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Rivier came out strong in the opening set, as four different Raiders recorded kills to put jump ahead 8-4
• Emmanuel answered with a 9–1 run to take the lead
• The Raiders regained the lead behind kills from seniors Ali Rivera and Callie Nanos, but Emmanuel (Mass.) hung on to take the set on the back of a 7-4 run, 25–23
• The Saints carried that momentum into the second, using a 5–1 run to open the frame
• A 6-0 run in the middle of the set propelled Emmanuel (Mass.) ahead 14-6
• Despite five Raiders recording kills down the stretch, the Saints maintained their advantage and claimed the second set, 25–15
• Rivier bounced back in the third, outhitting Emmanuel (Mass.) .176 to .000 as a team
• The Raiders capitalized on miscues that fueled a 9–4 run to take a 14-8 lead
• The Saints battled back at the halfway mark of the third set to take their first lead of the set since the opening point
• First-year Emma Zeblisky sparked an 11-1 run that decided the set with a kill, followed by junior Sam Driend and Nanos adding two kills each, and an eight-point service run from first-year Reagan Pepin to cut down the Saints' match lead to one
• The fourth set went back and forth with 10 ties and Rivier holding a slight edge through the midway point
• Emmanuel (Mass.) did not back down and took control late in the stanza, 23-19
• The Raiders responded with three straight points but a kill and a pair of blocks put Rivier's comeback bid to rest, claiming the match 25–22

BOX SCORE BREAKDOWN

• Rivera led the offense with 11 kills with a .250 hitting percentage, adding 18 digs
• Nanos followed closely behind with 11 kills and three total blocks
• Sophomore Lily Seibel posted a double-double with 36 assists and 12 digs
• Defensively, senior Kaitlyn Miller anchored the defense with a team-high 19 digs.

UP NEXT

The Raiders return to action on Saturday, Nov. 1 for their penultimate match of the regular season. First serve against GNAC foe New England Col. is set for 11:00 a.m. inside the Muldoon Center.