Volleyball Loses to Lamar, 3-1

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ALBANY, N.Y. - The Seton Hall volleyball team fell to Lamar, 3-1 (23-25, 25-19, 25-23, 25-19), to open up the University of Albany Classic. The Pirates (1-3) will face off against Albany at 12:30 p.m. and Hofstra at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday to wrap up the tournament.

Junior Sarah Osmun (Crystal Lake, Ill.) led the way with 17 kills, followed by a 14-kill effort by sophomore Meghan Matusiak (Winfield, Ill.). Sophomore Rachael Thornquist (Crystal Lake, Ill.) and senior Allie Matters (North Tonowanda, N.Y.) each posted 13 digs to lead the defense.

SHU held a slight lead in the early stages of the first set, but began to pull away after a Matusiak kill gave the Pirates a 13-8 edge. The Hall extended the cushion to 19-12 after a Melissa Bellomy (Arlington, Texas) spike, but the Cardinals (1-3) mounted a comeback, pulling within 19-17 after several Pirate miscues.

After a timeout, Seton Hall regrouped by scoring five of the next seven points to force set point. A 5-0 Lamar run made it a one-point contest, but Osmun sealed the opening set with a kill to give the early advantage to the Pirates.

Both teams stayed close to begin set two, but the Cardinals pulled away with a 6-2 spurt in the middle of the frame to take a 19-13 lead, and Lamar never looked back as they evened the match.

Trailing 12-8 in the third set, SHU strung together a 9-3 tear to turn the deficit into a 17-15 advantage. The Cardinals quickly responded with two straight to tie the match, and regained a 20-19 lead after a kill by Wendy Krell. A Matusiak kill knotted the score at 22-22, but Lamar took the three of the final four points recorded to take the set, 25-23.

Lamar doubled up the Pirates, 16-8, in the fourth set and the Pirates could only close within four points, before suffering their defeat.