Easton, Pa. – The Saint Peter's women's volleyball team was defeated on Saturday in each of its matches against Lafayette and Lehigh.
Saint Peter's first match came against Lafayette. Junior Dayana Arrufat-Rondon (Truyillo, Puerto Rico/Carvin School) finished with a team-high 10 kills. Sophomore Lauren Behrens (Frankfort, Ill./Lincoln-Way East) registered seven kills while senior Laura Reinhart (Belvidere, N.J./Newton) tallied six kills.
In the first set, both teams traded points with the score tied at seven. The Leopards then went on an 11-3 run to take an 18-10 lead in the set. Saint Peter's would not be able to recover from the deficit. Lafayette went on to win the first set, 25-16.
Second set, the Peacocks jumped out to an early 11-7 lead. The Leopards would respond with a 12-3 run to take a 19-14 lead in the set. Lafayette would continue to roll, winning the set 25-17.
In the third set, Lafayette picked up where they left off, starting the set with 8-3 run. Saint Peter's would respond with an 8-4 run to bring the deficit within one point. Saint Peter's was unable to catch Lafayette, as the Leopards finished on a 13-6 run to win the third set, 25-17.
Lafayette players Karissa Ciliento and Brianne Giangiobbe finished with double-digit kills.
The second match of the afternoon was a rematch of an Aug. 31 contest against Lehigh. Behrens registered a game-high 10 kills in the contest. Reinhart finished with eight kills while Arrrufat-Rondon tallied six kills.
In the first set, Saint Peter's jumped out to an early 6-4 lead. The Mountain Hawks would respond, scoring six consecutive points to take a 10-6 lead. The Peacocks would answer, going on an 8-4 run to take a one-point lead. With Saint Peter's up 14-13, Lehigh scored five straight points to take an 18-15 lead. Kills by Behrens would help the Peacocks get the score tied at 19. Lehigh would hold off the Peacocks, going on a 6-3 run to win the set, 25-22.
Second set, Lehigh started with 11-4 run to take an early lead. Saint Peter's was unable to recover, as they struggled offensively to score points in the set. The Mountains Hawks kept their foot on the gas, winning the second set 25-10.
Third set, the Mountain Hawks picked up where they left off, starting the set with a 10-5 run. Saint Peter's would respond with 7-5 run to cut the deficit to two. Lehigh would respond, taking a 20-15 lead. The Peacocks scored four consecutive points to cut the Mountain Hawks lead to one. Lehigh would hold on to the lead, winning the third set 25-22.
Lehigh player Ana Vrhel led the team with 10 kills. Jade Van Streepen finished the contest with nine kills.
Junior Kristina Baehr (Manassas, Va./Stonewall Jackson) finished the match with 24 assists. Senior Jenny Pliska (Portland, Ore./La Salle College Prep) finished the contest eight digs.
After Saturday's matches, Saint Peter's drops to 1-7 on the season.
The Peacocks return to action Sept. 13, when they travel to take on Syracuse and Chicago St.