Columbia Volleyball Continues Middling Season With 3-1 Loss To Rider

Upper West Side NY

22 October, 2021

11:55 AM

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Columbia Daily Spectator BY TALYA LERNER AND MATTHEW ROWELL OCTOBER 21, 2021After snapping a five game losing streak and earning its most dominant win of the season against Harvard, the Columbia volleyball team fell 3-1 to Rider University Wednesday in its first out-of-conference contest in over a month. Rider came out of the gate with an aggressive offense, easily commanding the first two sets. Although a reenergized Columbia team came back to dominate in the third, the Lions ultimately lost in a close fourth set. "A midweek match was a new challenge for the team and we just didn't play our best," head coach Allison Keeley said. The Lions (5-12, 2-5 Ivy) faced an intimidating opponent in Rider (11-10), which entered the game with a formidable 8-3 record in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. Having played a full season last academic year, the Broncs also had a significant experience advantage over the Lions, half of whom are playing their first collegiate season. Rider opposite Morgan Romano, ranked 38th in the nation in total kills before this game, had the potential to be an especially dangerous threat against Columbia's defense. The Lions managed to contain Romano, holding her to a modest .119 hitting percentage throughout the game. In the first set, Romano had only 4 kills. However, other players stepped up for the Broncs, enabling Rider to secure an early lead through aggressive plays. With significant help from sophomore outside hitter Logan Harlock, the Light Blue kept the score close but never gained a lead, eventually falling in the first set 25-23. The Lions remained competitive throughout the second set, even taking their first lead of the night at 21-20. Harlock and her fellow outside hitter junior Noelle Foster led the offense, smashing five and six kills, respectively. After gaining the lead, however, two attack errors in a row doomed the Light Blue and ended what was a sloppy second set for the team at 25-23. The pulse of the game shifted dramatically at the beginning of the third set, as a frustrated Columbia team took the first four points. The Lions commanded the set, ending with 18 kills to Rider's 8 while causing the Broncs to frequently substitute players in hopes of gaining traction. Both senior Isa Lamus and sophomore Soah Franklin had hitting percentages of at least .400 en route to an impressive 25-14 set win. Unfortunately, the Lions did not carry that momentum into the final set, and the two teams traded points until offensive miscues by Columbia gifted crucial points to Rider. Romano—who struggled early, hitting sub .100 in the first and third sets—rebounded in the Lions' last stand, closing the set with a .333 hitting percentage. The Broncs went on to win the set 25-21, taking the match on a Columbia service error. While Columbia's defense struggled to limit Rider's attack at times, there were positive takeaways for the Lions as well. Keeley praised the play of Harlock, who is in her first season for the Light Blue and smashed a career-high 19 kills, and Franklin, who put down two of Columbia's three blocks. "It did give us the opportunity to learn and grow before returning to Ivy League play and our upcoming match against Cornell," Keeley said. The Lions will resume conference play in Ithaca against Cornell on Saturday, Oct. 23 at 2 p.m. The game will be televised on ESPN+. Staff writer Talya Lerner can be contacted at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @LernerTalya. Staff writer Matthew Rowell can be contacted at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @matthewrowell01. Founded in 1877, the Columbia Daily Spectator is the independent undergraduate newspaper of Columbia University, serving thousands of readers in Morningside Heights, West Harlem, and beyond. Read more at columbiaspectator.com and donate here.