PLYMOUTH, N.H. – The Rivier women's volleyball team dropped fell in five sets to non-conference foe Plymouth St. Wednesday evening at Foley Gymnasium.
With the loss, the Raiders dropped to 6-6, while the Panthers improved to 10-3.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Plymouth St. opened the match with a 5-3 lead before Rivier battled back to tie the opening set at 5-5 and 6-6 as a result of a pair of kills from junior Lydia Brakefield. After the Panthers regained the lead, the Raiders ties the set once again at 10-10 thanks to an attack error. Plymouth St. broke the deadlock with a 5-0 stretch to build a 15-10 advantage. Rivier continued to fight, using kills from junior Savannah Dunne, Brakefield, senior Sam Driend, first-year Brooke Braswell, and senior Lacey Turner to cut the deficit to 21-19. A service ace from sophomore Mollie Miner made it a one-point game at 24-23 on a service ace. Plymouth St., however, closed out the set on the following point, 25-23.
- The Panthers carried their momentum into the second set, opening with a 8-3 advantage before the Raiders answered with consecutive kills from Dunne, Brakefield, and Driend to make it 10-6. The Panthers extended the lead to 13-6 and later 18-8, while Rivier was unable to mount another sustained comeback. Plymouth St. closed out the set, 25-13, to take a 2-0 match lead.
- Rivier responded in the third set, battling through an 8-8 tie before Plymouth St. moved ahead 12-9 and later 14-10. The Raiders then turned the set around, scoring six straight points behind kills from Brakefield and Driend, along with a pair of Plymouth St. errors, to take a 16-14 lead. Rivier extended the advantage to 22-16 with kills from junior Lily Seibel and first-years Ava Pohopek and Ashlee Salafia. The Panthers made a late push, cutting the deficit to 24-21. The Raiders, however, closed out the set on a Seibel kill, 25-21, to force a fourth set.
- Rivier came out strong in the fourth set, scoring the first three points and building an 8-2 lead, using two kills, two aces, and a block. The Raiders continued to find the floor, taking a 17-9 lead thanks to a pair of kills from Salafia and one from Brakefield. The Panthers battled back to a one-point margin, 20-19, before Rivier closed out the frame, scoring five of the final six points to force a fifth set.
- The Raiders scored the first three points of the deciding set before Plymouth St. answered to tie the frame at 3-3. The Raiders regained a 5-4 advantage, but the Panthers responded with a 4-1 stretch to move ahead 8-5. Rivier pulled within one at 9-8 on a Pohopek kill, but Plymouth St. answered with six of the final seven points, including three straight to close out the match,15-9.
BOX SCORE BREAKDOWN
- Brakefield paced the offense with 16 kills and a .484 hitting percentage.
- Salafia followed close behind with 11 kills and .258 hitting percentage.
- Seibel logged 37 assists and a team-best 25 digs.
- Miner added 11 digs and a team-high three service aces.
UP NEXT
The Raiders return to the court, Thursday, Oct. 1 for a non-conference bout with Gordon. The opening serve is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. at the Muldoon Center.
