Saturday, September 12
Erie, Pa.
11:00 AM
Columbia
5-1,0-0Ivy League
0
vs
3
Kent State
5-4,0-0MAC
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kent St. | 25 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
| Columbia | 23 | 14 | 16 | 0 |
Volleyball Falls to Kent State in Three
9/12/2026 1:11:00 PM | Volleyball
Columbia goes 2-1 at the Laker Invitational
ERIE, Pa. – Columbia volleyball's historic stretch to open 2025 came to an end on Saturday afternoon, when the Lions fell to Kent State 3-0 in the finale of the Lake Invitational at the Mercyhurst Athletic Center.
Columbia (5-1) could not get its attack going, finishing with season lows in both kills (26) and attack percentage (.115). Leading the charge for the Lions was Elena Maynulet, who had eight kills on 27 attempts. She also had a team-high 11 digs.
Kent State (5-4) finished the afternoon with 43 kills as a team while hitting .287. The Golden Flashes had four players with eight or more kills and were led by Mercedez Brown, who had a match-high 11 kills.
In the opening set, trailing 19-17 late, the Lions went on a 4-1 run to take a 21-20 lead late. But errors by Columbia let the Golden Flashes retake the lead, going up 23-21. Maynulet got the momentum back with the Lions, smashing two kills out of a Columbia timeout to tie the set 23-23. Errors plagued the Lions in the opening frame; Columbia had eight attack errors and five service errors.
The second set started like the opening frame, with neither team able to gain an advantage. That flipped before the media timeout; with the set tied 9-9, the Golden Flashes went on a 6-0 run to take a 15-9 lead. Kent State hit .341 in the second set. Columbia could only muster eight kills on 39 swings.
In the final frame, the Kent State attack took over. The Golden Flashes finished with 18 kills; Columbia only responded with seven of their own. Kylee Eze and Josie Zynczak each scored two. Trailing 15-9 at the media timeout, Eze gave the Lions a spark with back-to-back kills to make it 16-12, but Columbia could not close the gap any further, falling 25-16.
The Lions return to action next Friday when they travel to Fort Wayne, Ind., for the Purdue Fort Wayne Invitational. The Lions open play against Mastodons at 10 a.m. ET.
FOLLOWING THE LIONS
For the latest on Columbia volleyball, follow @CULionsVB on Twitter and Instagram, and on the web at GoColumbiaLions.com.
Columbia (5-1) could not get its attack going, finishing with season lows in both kills (26) and attack percentage (.115). Leading the charge for the Lions was Elena Maynulet, who had eight kills on 27 attempts. She also had a team-high 11 digs.
Kent State (5-4) finished the afternoon with 43 kills as a team while hitting .287. The Golden Flashes had four players with eight or more kills and were led by Mercedez Brown, who had a match-high 11 kills.
In the opening set, trailing 19-17 late, the Lions went on a 4-1 run to take a 21-20 lead late. But errors by Columbia let the Golden Flashes retake the lead, going up 23-21. Maynulet got the momentum back with the Lions, smashing two kills out of a Columbia timeout to tie the set 23-23. Errors plagued the Lions in the opening frame; Columbia had eight attack errors and five service errors.
The second set started like the opening frame, with neither team able to gain an advantage. That flipped before the media timeout; with the set tied 9-9, the Golden Flashes went on a 6-0 run to take a 15-9 lead. Kent State hit .341 in the second set. Columbia could only muster eight kills on 39 swings.
In the final frame, the Kent State attack took over. The Golden Flashes finished with 18 kills; Columbia only responded with seven of their own. Kylee Eze and Josie Zynczak each scored two. Trailing 15-9 at the media timeout, Eze gave the Lions a spark with back-to-back kills to make it 16-12, but Columbia could not close the gap any further, falling 25-16.
The Lions return to action next Friday when they travel to Fort Wayne, Ind., for the Purdue Fort Wayne Invitational. The Lions open play against Mastodons at 10 a.m. ET.
FOLLOWING THE LIONS
For the latest on Columbia volleyball, follow @CULionsVB on Twitter and Instagram, and on the web at GoColumbiaLions.com.
Players Mentioned
Team Stats
KentSt
CU
Kills
43
26
Errors
10
14
Attempts
115
104
Hitting %
.287
.115
Points
52.0
35.0
Assists
35
21
Aces
4
5
Blocks
5
4
Game Leaders
Kills
8
Aces
1
Blocks
0
Kills
4
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Kills
3
Aces
0
Blocks
0
Kills
3
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Friday, September 04
Thursday, September 03
Saturday, November 08
Friday, October 10
