ITHACA, NY – The University of Rochester volleyball team was defeated twice on Friday afternoon, opening up play at the Ithaca College Invitational at Ben Light Gymnasium.
 
Rochester (1-5) was upended by the 21st-ranked and host Bombers 3-0 in the opening match before dropping a 3-1 decision later on against local rival St. John Fisher University.
 
During the Ithaca match, Rochester and the Bombers (3-1) battled back-and-forth in a terrific opening set. UR jumped ahead early 5-1 and held the lead until three straight points lifted Ithaca even at 17-all.
 
Ashley Cook provided a kill to put UR back ahead and three points later, the 'Jackets held a 20-18 advantage. Ithaca scored two straight to tie the set once again and eventually edged in front 23-22.
 
UR's Paige Stephenson and Caroline Hoag teamed on a big block at the net to make the score 23-all and Hoag smashed a kill on the next point to give Rochester a set point, but Ithaca fended it off.
 
Rochester later had two more set points, with Ithaca also having two, finishing off a thrilling 29-27 win in the opening set after a block from Gabriela Gonzalez-Abreu and Josie Hampton.
 
Ithaca used the momentum from the tight set one win and raced to 25-10 and 25-8 set wins in the next two games to swipe the overall match.
 
Hoag and Rylee Bergeron led UR with seven kills each. Ruby Moore and Cook each had four, while McKenzie McDonald handed out 12 assists. Lydia Weeks was the top defender with 13 digs and Cook added ten.
 
Later in the afternoon, Rochester and the Cardinals (3-2) traded a pair of close set wins over the opening two frames. St. John Fisher took the opener 25-21, with Rochester rebounding for a 25-22 set two winning score to level the match.
 
St. John Fisher vaulted in front 7-2 in the third only to see Rochester rally with four straight points to trim the lead to 7-6. Rylee Bergeron, Stephenson and Myla Nover-Estes all had kills in the run for the Yellowjackets.
 
The Cardinals were able to withstand the Rochester rally and eventually build the lead back to six, up 17-11. A service error gave UR a point, but St. John Fisher scored the next three before a Ruby Moore kill put the score at 20-13 Fisher. The Cardinals later put away the third set 25-15.
 
In the fourth, St. John Fisher went wire-to-wire, posting a 25-17 win to secure the overall match victory by a 3-1 score.
 
Bergeron had a terrific match for the Yellowjackets in the nightcap, smacking 15 kills while hitting .400 and also chipping in seven digs. Cook finished with nine kills and Nover-Estes added seven.
 
Weeks again had 13 digs with Cook picking up 12. Alexia Nelms was the top setter with 16 assists, as three players had eight or more (Katie Westerheim 10, Iliana Balaskas 8).
 
Rochester finishes off action at the Ithaca Invitational on Saturday with a 1 pm matchup against Middlebury College.