The volleyball team was tasked with playing Colgate in back-to-back games on Oct. 13 and 18. In the second game, the Bison visited Hamilton, N.Y. to take on the Raiders and fell 3-0 (25-19, 25-18, and 26-24).

The game marked the start of the second round of games against Patriot League opponents, as the Bison had played each conference opponent once thus far. Unfortunately, Colgate came out strong and finished with the victory despite a run in the third set led by Erika Eastley ’17 and Kristen Parks ’17.

In the first and second sets, Colgate took over quickly, starting and finishing the sets with efficiency. But in the third and final set, the Bison fought back and made for a very exciting finish. Towards the end of the set, the Bison led by as much as 21-18, but could not capitalize on the lead, allowing Colgate to battle back and clinch the win.

“It was a real mental challenge to play the same team back-to-back,” Hana Sawanobori ’18 said. “We knew that it would set the stage for the second rounds of Patriot League games. It was a tough loss, but now the team knows exactly what we need to work on and how hard we need to work as we face teams for a second time.”

There were impressive performances by Eastley and setter Meghan Wentzel ’16, who both performed consistently when the team needed them to step up. Wentzel finished with 15 assists for the game, and Eastley finished with four kills. Hailey Stout ’18 led the squad with five kills. On the defensive end, Karen Campbell ’16 racked up two block assists while Parks tallied an impressive 19 digs.

“Looking forward, we’re focusing on ways to improve our game and start strong from the beginning. We have a renewed sense of energy and determination to win more games as we enter the second half of our conference play,” Wentzel said.

The Bison dropped to 4-13 overall and 3-6 in the Patriot League. The Bison still have a number of games ahead of them, with plenty of time for improvement to qualify for post-season tournament play. They now turn their attention to their match at Holy Cross on Oct. 24, followed by a match at Army on Oct. 25.