NEW YORK -- The Columbia volleyball team lost to Fordham in four sets (25-4, 24-26, 25-15, 25-22) on Saturday afternoon in the finale of the Big Apple Tournament. 

After the Lions struggled to find their footing in the first set, Eva Atkins set the tone early in set two with a monster kills to to reignite the Columbia offense. Hailee Watts followed that up with a service ace to put the Lions in front early. Fordham and Columbia went back-and-forth through the first portion of the set, until Anna Gioranidi slammed a kill with the score tied t4-14 that gave the Lions the lead again. Kills from Harper Justema and Juliana Williamson would highlight a 7-1 Columbia run, and the Lions looked to be in control. However, the Rams would not go down without a fight, clawing back and fending off two set points to tie things back up at 24-24. Head Coach Patric Santiago called timeout to settle down the offense, and they responded right away as a kill from Atkins and a Ram attack error put the finishing touches on a 26-24 set victory and evened the match up at 1-1. 

Fordham quickly responded in the third set, jumping out to a 13-5 lead. Hanna Vorhies subbed in for the first time in a Columbia uniform and was making plays, including her second of three kills in the match to keep the deficit at eight, but the Rams closed out the set with a 4-1 run to gain a 2-1 advantage in the match. 

Fordham looked poised to wrap things up quickly in set four after jumping out to an early lead again, this time 11-6. The Lions had something to say about that, roaring back to take the lead on a 6-0 run highlighted by kills from Watts and Justema, and the third career kill from libero Delaney Seaman. The Rems quickly re-took the lead, but Columbia fought tooth and nail in an attempt to force a fifth set, as a kill from Watts cut Fordham's lead down to 21-20. Atkins helped the Lions fight off a match point with a kill, but ultimately the Rams would close things out 25-22 and secure the match. 

Atkins was outstanding all night, tallying a career-high 15 kills. Watts nearly collected a double-double with 11 kills and eight digs. Both Columbia setters also just missed double-doubles, as Ruby van der Heide totaled 15 assists and nine digs and Clara Yu notched 13 assists and eight digs. 

Columbia will embark on an 11-game road trip following the Big Apple Tournament. Next weekend, the Lions will participate in the Friar Classic, hosted by Providence in Rhode Island. Columbia will play its first game against Stonehill on Friday at 5 p.m.

For the latest on Columbia volleyball, follow @CULionsVB on Twitter and Instagram, and on the web at GoColumbiaLions.com.