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Women's Volleyball comeback falls short in 3-2 loss to Buffalo State

ROCHESTER, N.Y. – RIT graduate student setter Sydney Neff totaled 38 assists, including the 3,000th of her career, along with 24 digs, but it was Buffalo State holding on for a 3-2 (25-19, 25-13, 22-25, 22-25, 18-16) victory over the Tigers, Friday, on the first day of the RIT Invitational.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

  • Tied, 10-10, in the opening set, Buffalo State rode an 8-1 run to an 18-11 lead that proved insurmountable. The Bengals also broke open an 8-8 second-set with a 9-1 run for a 17-9 edge, before scoring eight of the final 13 points to open a 2-0 lead.
  • RIT trailed, 13-11, in the third, but used a 6-1 run to build a 17-14 lead. Buffalo State came back with an 8-3 run to lead, 22-20, but a kill by sophomore outside hitter Mia Gerber followed by back-to-back kills by junior outside hitter Lilo Gerald-Emesih, kicked off a 5-0 run to finish the set.
  • RIT jumped out to an 11-3 fourth-set lead and later led, 16-8, but the Bengals responded with a 10-2 run to knot the score, 18-18. The Tigers pulled back ahead with a 6-1 surge and eventually put the set away on a Gerber kill to knot the match, 2-2.
  • Buffalo State led, 8-3, to start the fifth, but RIT scored seven of the next eight points to take a 10-9 lead. The Tigers later had two swings at match point, but the Bengals fought both off for a 14-14 score. A Gerber kill made it a 15-14 Tiger lead, but the visitors scored two points to retake a 16-15 lead. Gerber tied the score, 16-16, with her final kill, but Buffalo State clinched the match with back-to-back points.

MATCH NOTES

  • Neff came into the match two assists short of 3,000, becoming only the eighth Tiger in program history to eclipse the milestone.
  • Tigers senior outside hitter Samantha Cox logged a team-high 15 kills, while Gerber finished with 10.
  • Graduate student libero Hailey Blixt reached double-figures with 16 digs. 

WHAT'S NEXT
RIT squares off with Springfield at 1:30 p.m. and Hamilton at 4:00 p.m. during day-two action of the tournament tomorrow.