EASTON, Pa. – The Lafayette College volleyball team struck first in all three sets Friday night, but ultimately dropped the weekend opener to Army (21-25, 18-25, 19-25) inside Kirby Sports Center.
 
Sophomore Abby Nieporte and freshman Carol Ulichney had 10 and nine kills, respectively while junior Katie Weston had 202 digs.
 
After Lafayette's opening point, Army jumped out to the early lead before the Leopards were able to chip away and take a 15-14 advantage into the media timeout. From there, the visitors score five of the next six points and never looked back.
 
The second set was just as tight at the start with both sides trading blows before a 4-0 Army run made it 16-11 to force the Lafayette timeout. The Leopards were able to cut the deficit to 17-13 before a quick 3-0 outburst made it too much to overcome.
 
It was all Army in the third after an early 5-0 Black Knights run. Army would piece together two more 4-0 runs in the final frame before the Leopards showed life late in the set with four-straight of their own to make it 21-16 Army.
 
The visitors would hit .305 on the night and place two attackers in double figures while junior Alyssa Vitale had 25 assists for the Leopards.
 
It's a quick turnaround as Lafayette hosts defending Patriot League champions Colgate Saturday at 4 p.m. inside Kirby Sports Center.