The Bison volleyball team traveled to Easton and Bethlehem to face the Leopards of Lafayette on Oct. 25 and the Mountain Hawks of Lehigh on Oct. 26. Despite a tough fight, the Orange and Blue fell to both teams.

On Oct. 25, the Bison captured an early lead over the Leopards, winning the first set 25-19. Maintaining this momentum and leading 17-10 in the second set, the Leopards proved to fight back, overcoming the Bison with a score of 27-25. The third set continued the back and forth efforts. Although the Bison fought valiantly, Lafayette claimed the set with a score of 25-18. The Leopards then closed out the fourth set 25-15, granting Lafayette their second Patriot League victory of the season.

Stat leaders for hitting percentage in this matchup included Kelsey O’Loughlin ’23 with .545. Leaders in kills were Sophie Bullard ’20 with 12, Mimi Richards ’20 with seven, and Anna Carroll ’21 and Lisa Zoch ’23 both tallying six. Richards also led the team in blocks with nine. O’Loughlin led the team with 29 assists while Brooke Stark ’20 led the team in digs with 21.

On Oct. 26, the Bison began the game trailing the Mountain Hawks by several points, until they finally came within two points, with a score of 19-17. Despite valiant efforts around the court, the opposition collected the win 25-20.

In the second set, the team started strong with a 4-0 run. A timeout by Lehigh proved to be the recollection they needed, as they went on to win 25-19. In the third, with the Orange and Blue never trailing by more than four, the team suffered a tough defeat as the Mountain Hawks swept the Bison.

Bullard led the team in kills with 11, followed by Zoch with seven, Richards with six, and Carroll with five. Bullard also led the team with 12 digs, followed by Stark with 11, O’Loughlin with 10, and Sarina Singer ‘23 with 7. O’Loughlin also led the team in assists again, this time with 30, contributing to her stand-out debut as a freshman.

“I’m so grateful for the opportunity to play for this school and play for my coaches and with my teammates. I have the best team and am so grateful for them,” O’Loughlin said.

The volleyball team has now moved to 2-8 in the Patriot League. This weekend, the Orange and Blue will be back in Lewisburg, where they will face American on Nov. 1 and Loyola on Nov 2.