The volleyball team hosted its first matches of the season in the 23rd annual Bucknell Invitational on Sept. 12 and 13. The Bison faced Connecticut and Cornell and dropped both matches.

The first match-up was against UConn, who defeated Cornell 3-0 the previous night. The Bison took a 7-1 lead in the first set, but the Huskies came on strong after and defeated the Bison in four sets (3-1). The final scores were 27-25, 20-25, 25-23, and 25-17.

Erika Eastley ’17 tallied nine kills in the match as well as three solo blocks and five block assists. She now has 33 block assists on the season. Hailey Stout ’18 also led the Bison with a total of 13 kills.

The Bison regrouped to take on Cornell but lost in three sets (25-22, 25-21, 25-19). Stout continued to accumulate points for the Bison by adding on eight more kills for a total of 21 for the weekend. Setter Meghan Wentzel ’16 led the team with 19 assists and racked up 13 digs on the day.

“Although our record is not where we want it to be currently, I can tell that this team is going to be much different than in years past, which is very exciting. The freshmen have come in and made a huge impact already, and I know if we keep working hard in practice, the results will come,” Wentzel said.

The Bison will have to bring their optimism to fuel the team in the upcoming Patriot League games. The Bison take on Army tonight at 7, followed by Holy Cross tomorrow at 5 p.m. Both games will be in Davis Gym.