HACKENSACK, N.J. – The Fairleigh Dickinson volleyball team fell in four sets to LIU Brooklyn (25-14, 22-25, 25-14, 25-22) at the Rothman Center on Saturday evening.
 
In the loss, freshman Nataliya Rybakova notched double-digit kills for the third-straight outing by finishing with 12, while senior Taylor Wyckoff double-doubled with 10 kills and 16 digs.
 
LIU Brooklyn (12-8, 5-2 NEC) was led by Nina Petranovic's 25 kills, 14 digs and six block assists in the win as they remain in second place in the Northeast Conference standings.
 
The Knights (4-17, 1-6 NEC) were unable to build off last night's momentum from the win against St. Francis Brooklyn as the Blackbirds captured the opening set in comfortable fashion.
 
Leading 14-12, the Blackbirds scored 11 of the final 13 points of the frame to take a 1-0 lead. Junior outside hitter paced the Blackbirds in the frame with eight kills on 14 attacks and did not make a single error, resulting in a .571 attack percentage, while Petranovic added seven in the first-set win.
 
The second set saw the Knights take an early 5-2 lead with two kills coming from Rybakova. Tied at 11-11, the Knights rattled off three straight points highlighted by a Wyckoff kill and service ace. The team retained at least a three-point lead for the duration of the set en route to the 25-22 win. Wyckoff tallied five kills in the set and sophomore Erika Sullivan tied Rybakova with four.
 
LIU Brooklyn took control with a dominant third set, which limited the Knights to just a -.028-attack percentage.  A 10-4 lead ballooned to 17-6 and despite a late push by the home team, the Blackbirds rolled to the 11-point win.
 
In the final set of the evening, the Knights overcame an early 8-4 hole with a 6-1 run, highlighted by a Wyckoff kill, which prompted an LIU timeout.
 
With sophomore Emily Magee serving, the Blackbirds responded with three straight tallies before a kill from FDU freshman setter McKenna Setterlund ended the spurt. Setterlund finished with 34 assists, 13 digs and four kills in the match.
 
The Knights continued to chip away and found themselves within two, 20-18, after a tally by sophomore Annabel Reyes. Reyes ranked third on the Knights with eight kills.
 
The teams exchanged points, with Wyckoff supplying both for the Knights with kills to make it a 22-20 game. Then, Fink and FDU freshman Allison Koester each traded kills before LIU closed out the set with a kill from setter Amanda Hubbard and an FDU miscue.
 
Hubbard dished out a match-high 42 assists on the evening, while the Blackbirds' libero, Natalia Rivera led all players with 25 digs.
 
The Knights return to action this Wednesday, October 18 when they square off against Manhattan for the second time this season. The match is set for 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday night at the Rothman Center.