New York University's 10th-ranked women's volleyball team split against Swarthmore College and Calvin University in Brooklyn on Friday to open the NYU Showdown, a two-day event featuring a highly-competitive field of teams.

The Violets defeated Swarthmore with set scores of 25-21, 25-27, 25-21, 25, 21, but lost in four sets to Calvin, finishing with set scores of 25-22, 19-25, 25-23, 25-12. 

Facing off against the Garnet in the nightcap, NYU started off the first set strong with four service aces by Lindsey Hirano, Haley Holz, Olivia Lewandowski and Ava Launsbach. Swarthmore played a close game, staying within just three or four points for most of the set, but 15 kills from the Violets solidified their first set win.

Launsbach delivered another service ace to kick off the second set, but the Garnet leaped ahead with a 9-2 run to flesh out a seven-point lead at 20-13. However, eight unanswered points by the Violets, bolstered by kills from Holz and Eveliena Pasmooji and a service ace by Dominique Drust, pulled the lead back to NYU at 21-20. From there, both sides traded kills back and forth to a 25-25 tie before Swarthmore edged out a 27-25 victory.

NYU and Swarthmore continued their close play into the third set, staying tied up to 18-18 until the Violets created some separation with a 7-2 run to take the third.

In the fourth, the Violets played a strong game, notching match highs of 16 kills and .342 hitting. Still, neither NYU nor Swarthmore let the other team get ahead by more than three points for the majority of the set until Taylor Odum slammed a kill to score the final point of the match.

Holz and Leela Anvekar both recorded double-digit kills with 17 and 14, respectively. Launsbach achieved multiple career highs with 24 assists, 19 digs and three service aces. Hirano had 25 digs and 10 assists while Drust recorded 11 digs and 20 assists, both securing double-doubles.

Earlier in the day, the Violets played against eighth-ranked Calvin in the opening match of the Showdown. In the first set, the Violets and Knights each posted small runs between four and six points in a close battle to a 13-13 tie. From there, the Knights took control with a 10-4 run. NYU made a comeback to pull within two points, but a kill by Calvin's Gabriella Kellogg ended the first set.  

The Violets responded by dominating the second set with a match-high hitting percentage of .300. Kills by Gabriella Spaethling, Odum, Pasmooji, Holz and Lewandowski, along with four service aces from Lewandowski, Drust, Holz and Anvekar, fueled the Violets' momentum.

However, in the third set, the Knights reared back with a 12-4 run, giving them enough of a lead to withstand NYU's 17 kills and win the frame.

Moving into the fourth set Calvin hit its stride, reaching an impressive .500 hitting percentage while holding the Violets to just seven kills and win the match.

Hirano posted 23 digs while both Launsbach and Drust had 10-plus assists. Spaethling led the Violets at 13 kills. 

The Violets are back to the court on Saturday, October 8, in Brooklyn for the second day of the NYU Showdown to face #9 University of Wisconsin-Whitewater and #19 Massachusetts Institute of Technology.