Oct. 25, 2013

(9-12, 5-4 PL) 1 2 3 4 F Lehigh 25 23 25 25 3 Lafayette 23 25 17 14 1 Box Score (9-12, 1-9 PL)

Easton, Pa. - Lafayette volleyball fell to visiting Navy in four sets on Friday night, 25-23, 23-25, 25-17 and 25-14. The Mids improved to 5-4 in Patriot League play, while the Leopards moved to 1-9.

Karissa Ciliento paced the Leopard offense with 14 kills, followed by Brianne Giangiobbe's 12 kills. Samantha Volk handed out 32 assists in the losing effort. Kelly Flynn, Danielle Towslee and Giangiobbe each had three block assists for the Leopards. Navy had four hitters in double figures led by Erin Fortner's 14 kills.

Navy opened set one with a 3-0 run, and pushed its lead to 15-10 midway through the game. A kill from Ciliento and an ace apiece from Ciliento and Towslee tied the first set at 17, forcing a Navy timeout. The Mids went on a 5-0 run out of the timeout to take control of the game. The Leopards cut the lead to one on three Ciliento kills, but Navy was able to clos the opening set, 25-23.

The Leopards came out strong in the second set, building an 8-4 lead highlighted by a pair of kills from Ciliento. After Navy took a brief 10-9 lead, Giangiobbe hit two kils, followed by a kill apiece from Ciliento and Flynn opened a 16-10 Lafayette advantage. With the game tied at 22, Volk was able to close out the set with an ace, giving the Leopards game two, 25-23.

The third set was all Navy as they ran out to a 6-0 lead on three service aces. The Leopards battled to get back into the game, but the Mids were always there to answer and finished the third set, 25-17. The fourth set saw the Leopards fall behind early, but bounce back and pull within one on a Giangiobbe kill, 5-4. The Mids broke the set open with an 8-0 run and eventually took the fourth game, 25-14 and the match, 3-1.

The Leopards are back in action tomorrow as they travel to Colgate for a 5 p.m. start. The game will be available live on the Patriot League Network.