By Andrew Arnao

Writer

The Bison women’s volleyball team played in the Blue Devil Volleyball Invite last weekend, dropping the first two matches to Stony Brook and Central Connecticut State but ending with a win over St. Peter’s.

During their first game last Friday against Stony Brook, the Bison lost 3-0, but Jessica Serrato ’14, Kebah Edoho ’13 and Morgan Mientus ’14 led the offense with nine, seven, and six kills respectively. Edoho also led the team with four blocks.

“We are still trying to find a winning lineup; everyone is really hot and cold right now,” Mientus said. “Our service errors really killed us.”

Against Central Connecticut, the Bison won the first set but lost momentum and dropped the second. The Bison started strong in the third set, but two errors eventually caused them to fall 26-24. The Orange and the Blue took the tied the match 2-2 in the fourth set but suffered their most difficult defeat in the fifth. Although they obtained the match point three times, the Bison were unable to convert, and ended up losing the set and the match 21-19.

Despite the loss, the team did not lose focus.

“When games became difficult or frustrating, the team really stepped it up and fought to the very end,” Edoho said. “Even people coming off the bench made huge contributions, showing that everyone on the team is extremely talented.”

The Bison showed their resiliency by defeating St. Peter’s in five sets shortly after their loss to Central Connecticut. Initially falling behind 2-1 due to errors and offensive woes, the Bison rallied to take the fourth set and used a 10-1 offensive surge to claim the fifth set and the match victory. Serrato, Mientus, Edoho and Anne Ellenberger ’12 each had double-digit kills, while Ellenberger also led the team in blocks with seven.

“We learned a lot as a team this weekend and played the most cohesive and competitive volleyball as a team so far,” Morgan Markarian ’15 said. “We had lots of different players step up from off the bench to contribute… and the starters all showed really good leadership as well. We’re looking forward to our home tournament this weekend and hoping for three big wins.”

Kat Tauscher ’13 and Edoho were selected to the all-tournament team.  Tauscher finished the weekend with 117 assists, 19 digs, and five blocks, while Edoho had 26 kills and nine blocks.

The Bison play Coppin State, Stony Brook and Bowling Green this weekend. The first game, against Coppin State, is tonight at 7:30 p.m.