Box Score

(4-2) 1 2 3 4 5 F Lafayette 21 25 25 25 12 2 FDU 25 10 22 27 15 3 Box Score (3-6)

PROVIDENCE, R.I. - For a fourth-consecutive match, Lafayette found itself heading to a decisive fifth set with an opponent. This time, however, the Leopards could not pull out a victory, as Fairleigh Dickinson completed its rally with a 3-2 victory at day one of the Friar Classic hosted by Providence.

Set scores were 25-21, 10-25, 22-25, 27-25, 15-12. The Knights (3-6) avenged a 3-0 defeat to Lafayette (4-2) when the two teams faced off in the Crosstown Tournament last Friday.

"We faced a much better FDU team this weekend," head coach Terri Dadio Campbell said. "Although we had more kills than them in almost every set, we had a significant number of unforced errors and attack errors, and a few of those errors occurred at very critical moments. I'm proud of the team for fighting back in set five after being down 6-0."

The Leopards continued to trail 10-3 after dropping those first six points, but they stormed back to win nine of the next 12 points and reduce the deficit to 13-12. Four different players registered kills in that stretch, including a pair for Katie Rethmeyer. Back-to-back kills for FDU, though, ended the comeback attempt.

Brianne Giangiobbe finished with a match-high 17 kills, reaching double figures in that category for a fifth-straight contest. Jet Manzi (13), Tori Smith (12) and Katherine Stevens (10) also had double-digit kills, with Manzi (15 digs) and Smith (12 digs) recording double-doubles. Lauren Pisauro managed 22 digs, leading the team for a fifth time in six matches this year.

Maria Balus, meanwhile, managed 59 assists, the most for any Lafayette player since Megan Carter managed 60 against Lehigh on Oct. 26, 2007.

The Leopards had a 19-17 advantage in the opening set before dropping eight of the last 10 points to fall into a 1-0 hole. The team responded emphatically in set two, finishing with a .400 attack percentage and winning by their largest margin thus far in 2015.

A kill by Stevens wrapped up a back-and-forth third set to give Lafayette a two sets to one lead, and the Leopards had a match point at 24-23 in the fourth set after a kill from Giangiobbe. Back-to-back kills from FDU's Caroline Laton put Lafayette back on the defensive, and an attack error would seal the set for the Knights three points later.

The Leopards again had an advantage on the service line, picking up 13 aces compared to four for FDU. Stevens led the way with five, while Pisauro chipped in four of her own.

Lafayette will have another rematch in its first match tomorrow when the Maroon and White takes on Saint Peter's at 1 p.m., looking for another victory after winning last Friday's contest 3-2. The Leopards conclude the tournament with a match against host Providence at 5 p.m.