Columbia University
UMBC
Volleyball Drops Invitational Opener to UMBC
9/16/2016 1:40:00 PM | Volleyball
| Set Scores | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| UMBC | 25 | 25 | 29 |
| Columbia | 20 | 20 | 27 |
| Stat Comparison | ||
|---|---|---|
| Category | UMBC | Columbia |
| Attack Pct. | .262 | .222 |
| Kills/Errors | 48/15 | 39/13 |
| Aces/Errors | 4/6 | 5/9 |
| Digs | 57 | 53 |
| Blocks | 4 | 3 |
| Individual Leaders | ||
|---|---|---|
| Category | UMBC | Columbia |
| Kills | Abbie Mirabella (15) | Zoe Jacobs (8) |
| Assists | Claudia Lopez (39) | Grace Campbell (17) |
| Digs | Kristin Watson (22) | Cassie Wes (21) |
| Blocks | Brooke hayden (3) | 5 Tied with 1 |
NEW YORK — The Columbia volleyball team began the Lion Invitational with a three-set loss to UMBC (20-25, 20-25, 27-29) Friday morning at Levien Gymnasium. It was the first of four matches the Lions are scheduled to play in the two-day tournament.
After dropping the first two sets, Columbia (2-5) appeared on its way to winning the third. The Lions took a 24-20 lead when Anja Malesevic put down her sixth kill of the match, earning four chances at the set. However, UMBC (8-3) responded with three straight kills before a Columbia ball-handling error leveled the score at 24. A Kesi Neblett kill gave the Lions another chance at the set they could not convert, as did a kill by Zoe Jacobs that put Columbia ahead 27-26.
The set finally came to an end three points later, but it was because UMBC had scored the final three points to claim both the set and the match. Abbie Mirabella put down her match-leading 15th kill to tie the score back up at 27 and a Retriever block on the final point ended the contest.
UMBC outhit Columbia .262 to .222 and also edged the Lions by four digs and a block. Mirabella was joined in double-figure kills by teammates Brooke Hayden and Zoya Trendaflilova, who put down 12 and 10, respectively. Hayden connected at a match-high percentage of .545.
For the Lions, senior Zoe Jacobs collected a team-high eight kills. Senior Kesi Neblett had seven and was Columbia's most effective attacker with a .500 hitting percentage. Sophomore Natasha Kosowicz and junior Anja Malesevic added six kills apiece.
On the ground, senior Cassie Wes recorded a team-high 21 digs, bringing her career total to 960. She is 40 shy of becoming the fourth Lion in program history to reach 1,000. UMBC's Kristin Watson edged Wes for the match with 22 digs, including 11 in the first set.
UMBC's attack was working from the get-go, finding six kills on its first seven attacks to build an early 8-3 lead in the opening set. Columbia got back within a pair, 13-11, with the help of three straight Kosowicz kills and an ace by first-year setter Grace Campbell, but the Retrievers would never give up the lead. The visitors rebuilt an 18-12 cushion, which was enough to withstand one more Columbia run and win the first.
Again, UMBC jumped out to an early lead in the second and head coach Brie Katz was forced to burn her first timeout with her team trailing 7-2. The Lions responded and stayed in the set, using a block solo from sophomore Luciana Del Valle to get within a point and eventually closing a 10-4 run with a 15-14 lead on a Del Valle ace. The lead would not hold, as UMBC posted a late 8-1 run to go ahead 23-17 and take a two-set lead.
Columbia came out of the 10-minute intermission with much more focus, scoring five straight early in the third to take the first significant lead of the set. UMBC was able to answer with five straight for itself later on, and the two sides battled closely through eight ties and six lead changes, the most of any of the three sets. In the end, Columbia was unable to close it out, as UMBC saved a total of six set points before earning the sweep.
The Lions return to action at 7:30 p.m., when they take on Providence (9-2). The Friars battle UMBC at 1:30 p.m., followed by a matchup between Hartford and Fordham at 4:30 p.m.
