LAWRENCEVILLE, N.J. – Sophomore Magdalena Maksimovic recorded her first double-double of the season but the Fairleigh Dickinson volleyball team fell in four sets at Rider (15-25, 17-25, 25-21, 17-25) on Wednesday night.
 
Maksimovic finished with 12 kills to go along with a season-high 11 digs, while sophomore Nataliya Rybakova matched her classmate with 12 kills in the loss.
 
Three Broncs (12-9) registered double-digit kills in the win led by Meredith Pellegrino, who amassed 16 kills.
 
The Knights (2-22) led 5-3 early in the opening set but saw the home team use a 7-2 run to grab control. Trailing 16-13, the Knights were unable to find the touch offensively as a series of attack errors helped the Broncs score nine of the final 11 points to take the first-set win.
 
After a 5-all tie in the second set, the Broncs established a lead and held off the Knights for the remainder of the set to net a 2-0 match advantage.
 
The third set saw the Knights record a higher attack percentage than the Broncs for the first time all night. Despite falling behind 8-4, the Knights chipped away with Rybakova leading the charge. The sophomore outside hitter recorded four of five tallies for the Knights to give her team a 12-10 edge.
 
The Broncs would fight back to take a 17-14 lead thanks to Hailey Riede, who recorded three of her 11 total kills over that span. Following a team timeout, the Knights responded with a flurry.
 
With freshman Jessica Throckmorton serving, the Knights rattled off eight straight points to establish a 22-17 lead. Throckmorton served up three aces over the course of the game-changing run as the Knights closed out the set.
 
Unfortunately for the Burgundy and Blue, the momentum would not last as the Broncs netted the first five points of the fourth set, including three consecutive service aces from Anilee Sher.
 
A kill by Rybakova eventually stopped the run but the Knights were unable to get closer than three points over the remainder of the set as the Broncs finalized the victory.
 
The Knights return to Northeast Conference action for their next match when they take on Sacred Heart this Friday, October 26. First serve is set for 5:00 p.m. in Fairfield, Conn.