Volleyball Battles, Falls to Dayton in Four Sets on Friday Night

Box Score | Highlights

Bronx, N.Y. – The Fordham volleyball team hosted the three-time defending champion Dayton Flyers on Friday night and fell in four sets, 25-19, 25-19, 23-25, 27-25. With the result, the Rams fall to 10-8 overall and 2-3 in conference play, while Dayton improves to 12-6 and 4-0, respectively.
 
"We battled extremely hard and it was great to watch us excel at a high level," Head coach Gini Ullery-Shrift said, "We played really disciplined across the board and it showed in the third and fourth sets. We've set the bar for our standard of play and our focus now is to come in and play at this level every single time."
 
The Flyers flexed their muscles in the opening two frames, taking identical 25-19 results into the 10-minute break. However, the Rams came out revitalized in the third set, pushing past the Flyers down the stretch and taking it, 25-23. The two schools put on a show in the fourth stanza, a seesaw battle down to the final points, with the visitors stealing the match on an attack error and a Lauren Bruns kill to cap a lengthy rally.
 
Sophomore Olivia Fairchild posted a match-high 19 kills (.209) to go with 10 digs, two aces, and two blocks, while freshman McKenna Lahr contributed her own double-double of 12 kills and 12 digs. Junior setter Maddy Walsh tallied a season-high 49 assists, plus five digs, while sophomore libero Morgan Williams chipped in 23 digs. Junior Olivia LaPorta kept her streak of three blocks or more up with five on the night, also contributing seven kills (.375). Elise Benjamin also saw action in three sets as she works her way back from an injury layoff, posting three kills and a block.
 
Fordham now hosts Saint Louis tomorrow night at 7 p.m. before heading back on the road next weekend. The match will not be streamed live online but live stats will be available, as always.