Box Score


PROVIDENCE, R.I. - The Fairleigh Dickinson women's volleyball team recovered from a 2-1 deficit to record a 3-2 win over the Lafayette Leopards on Friday night in their first match of the Friar Classic hosted by Providence College. The win helps the Knights improve to 3-6, while the Leopards slip to 4-2 on the season.
                         
The Knights and Leopards traded leads for much of the first set.  There were eight ties in this set alone, including late with the score knotted at 19-19. Three costly attack errors from the Leopards gave the Knights a 24-20 lead. After a service error from Lafayette's Jet Manzi, the Knights took a 25-21 win for 1-0 advantage in the match.
 
In the second set, Lafayette seized early control with a 7-3 lead. One of senior Maddie Gibbons (Columbus, Ohio/Grandview Heights)' 10 kills on an assist by senior setter Allison Butler (Plano, Texas/Plano) ended a 5-0 run for the Leopards putting the score at 16-7. However, Lafayette maintained its distance and pulled out a 25-20 set win to even the match at 1-1. Gibbons would end with a .455 hitting percentage.
 
The third set mirrored much of the first with both clubs exchanging leads. The score was tied nine times including a score of 11-11 coming off a kill from sophomore Alex Lolland (Auburn, Calif./Del Oro).  Later in the set, the Leopards held a 20-16 advantage. An assist from sophomore Josephine Gallagher (Aurora, Ill./Rosary) led to a kill by freshman Rebecca Sabol (Dublin, Ohio/Dublin Coffman) sparking a 3-0 run for Fairleigh Dickinson bringing the score to 20-18. Lafayette was able to maintain the lead and win the set 25-22.
 
The fourth remained competitive throughout before FDU ultimately took the set 27-25. Two kills from junior Caroline Laton (Kinnelon, N.J./Kinnelon) brought the score to 25-24 but a kill from Lafayette's Katherine Stevens evened the set for the fourteenth time at 25-25. Two attack errors by the Leopards helped the Knights take the set and even the game at 2 sets apiece.
 
In the fifth and final set, the Knights opened up a 6-0 lead, scored 10 of the first 13 points and never looked back.  The Leopards tried to answer with their own 4-0 run cutting the Knights lead to just one at 13-12 but late kills from Sabol and Lolland iced the set victory at 15-12 and the ultimately the match.
 
Freshman Savanna Wray (Peoria, Ariz./Sunrise Mountain) and sophomore Carly O'Sullivan (Bogota, N.J./Bogota) ended the night with 14 digs each.  O'Sullivan added seven kills to the match as did Sabol and Lolland. Butler finished with 29 assists and eight kills while senior Corey Lostetter (Jefferson Hills, Pa./Thomas Jefferson) and sophomore sophomore Taylor Wyckoff (San Diego, Calif./Clairemont) both concluded with seven digs.
 
Tomorrow, the Knights will continue in the Friar Classic playing the host Providence at 11 a.m. and Peacocks of Saint Peter's at 3 p.m.