The New York University women's volleyball team competed in a tri-match, hosted by Ramapo College in Mahwah, NJ, on Saturday, September 23.

In its first match, NYU (3-12) faced Middlebury College (7-2) and fell to the Panthers in four sets (25-11, 25-20, 20-25, 25-20).

The Violets opened the match by scoring the first point, but Middlebury followed with a 9-0 run and easily went on to win the first set.

The second set was much closer. NYU trailed by only one, 21-20, before the Panthers scored the final four points to take the set.   

The Violets' improved play continued into the third set, as the squad took an early two-point lead and eventually increased it to as many as eight points, 22-14, before settling for the five-point win.

However, NYU could not sustain its momentum in the fourth set. The Violets fell behind by as many as 10 points before their late rally fell short. 

Kate Glavan (9) and Rayne Ellis (8) led the Violets in kills, while Zel Fortson had a team-high 19 assists. Glavan also led all players with 11 digs. 

The Violets got off to a quick start in their second match of the day against Williams College, taking the first set 25-22.

However, the Ephs (6-5) rebounded to win the next three sets (25-14, 27-25, 25-22). In the pivotal third set, NYU had a 24-23 lead, but could not produce the winning point. In the final set, the Violets erased a seven-point deficit and pulled within one, 23-22, but a Williams kill and a NYU attack error sealed the Violets' fate.

Glavan and Caroline Rapp each had 15 kills in the loss. Fortson (20) and Katie Goyette (19) both had double-digit assists. 

"Kate and Caroline stabilized the serve receive and Gretchen Cash contributed with big points at key moments," said NYU Head Coach Jolie Ward.

NOTES:

- The Violets have lost seven straight matches.

- Jacqueline Kupeli had a career-high 24 digs vs. Williams.

"We are having little victories on the court that we hope translates into overall stronger team play as we move forward," Ward explained.  

The Violets return to action next Saturday and Sunday, September 30-October 1, when they compete at the University Athletic Association (UAA) Round Robin #1 in Cleveland, OH. NYU will face Washington University in St. Louis and Carnegie Mellon University at 2pm and 4pm, respectively, on Saturday. The Violets will then go against host Case Western Reserve University Sunday at 10am.