HARTFORD, Conn. – The Lafayette College volleyball team defeated St. Francis Brooklyn and University of Maryland Eastern Shore, 3-2, on Saturday in day two of the Hartford Invitational to extend their win streak to nine-straight matches.

The first match of the day saw Lafayette battling St. Francis Brooklyn (5-8) in five sets. The Leopards came out strong and took the first set 25-20 but the Terriers battled back and took the second, 25-21. The Maroon and White would win the third set 25-19 but were not able to finish it off in the fourth set, giving the Terriers win and setting themselves up for a 15 point fifth set.

St. Francis Brooklyn jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead in the fifth set and held the lead until a series of kills by sophomore Leanna Deegan and senior Katrina Ruggiero pulled the Leopards to a tie and then the eventual 9-6 lead. The Terriers attempted a comeback but Deegan and Ruggiero added more kills to their match total and secured the match win.

The Leopards saw four record double-digit kills in the win. They were led by Deegan with 19 kills and following closely behind her was sophomore Grace Tulevech with 17, Ruggiero with 16 and freshman Ellie Carerra-Justiz with 10.

The first match of the day also saw a plethora of season-highs for multiple Leopards. Senior Julia Howard recorded a season-high 11 digs, Tulevech totaled a season-high 51 total attacks and six digs and junior Jenna Bailey recorded a season-high 29 assists and her first kill of the season. Deegan's 19 kills tied her season-high.  

The second match of the day saw the same number of sets as Lafayette battled University of Maryland Eastern Shore (5-10) in five. After dropping the first set by a close score, 25-23, the Maroon and White stormed back to capture the next two sets 25-14 and 25-12. Their comeback wasn't enough to secure the win as the Hawks won the fourth set, 25-19.

In the final set of the tournament for the Leopards, the Hawks took an early 4-1 lead but the Leopards powered back to tie the match up at five apiece after a Deegan kill. From there, they were able to push through and prevail for the fifth set victory for the second time today.

Deegan once again led the Leopards with 12 kills. Carerra-Justiz recorded 11.

The Leopards two wins today also marks their second-straight tournament sweep this season. They won all four of their matches last weekend at the Lafayette Invitational. 

The Leopards next match is scheduled for Tuesday at 7 p.m., as they welcome St. Peter's University to close out their nonconference slate. They will open Patriot League action on Friday against Lehigh.