CHICAGO – The University of Rochester volleyball team closed out its conference regular season schedule on Sunday with a pair of losses at UAA Round Robin #3, falling to #12 Emory University 3-1 and Brandeis 3-2 at UChicago's Ratner Athletics Center.
 
Despite the losses, the Yellowjackets (4-18, 0-7 UAA) have shown improvement in recent UAA matchups, taking sets in its last three conference games, including forcing 5-setter's against CWRU and Brandeis.
 
In the opener against the 12th-ranked Eagles (14-4, 5-1 UAA), Emory started out quick with a 25-13 set one victory, aided by an 8-point run, breaking open what was a 10-9 Eagle lead. Emory hit well in the opening set, with 16 kills and a .500 hitting percentage.
 
During set two, Emory struggled offensively, with just nine kills and nine attack errors, leading to a 25-18 set win for the Yellowjackets. Rochester posted similar numbers offensively, but used four service aces and three blocks to earn the set win.
 
The set win started out with Rochester jumping in front early. A six-point burst aided by two Lilly Kraemer aces and a kill from Myla Nover-Estes gave the 'Jackets a 6-1 lead. Trailing 10-3, Emory scored four straight points to get within three, but the Yellowjackets answered right back with three of the next four points, including two kills by Rylee Bergeron to get back to a 5-point advantage.
 
Emory chipped away, eventually getting within one at 16-15, but URochester held the Eagles off with a big 5-point run to go ahead by six. Four Emory errors plus an ace by Katie Westerheim contributed to the run. Later in the set, Bergeron gave the 'Jackets a 25-18 win with a kill to end it.
 
In the third, Rochester had seven errors to just four kills in a 25-11 loss to put Emory up 2-1. The final set saw both teams hit in positive numbers, but Emory's attack was too strong, leading to a 25-16 win, clinching the match for the Eagles.
 
Overall, Bergeron finished with eight kills and six digs, while Nover-Estes and Sancia Williams ended with seven and six kills, respectively for URochester. Iliana Balaskas had 17 assists while Westerheim finished with a team-high three aces. Both Williams and Paige Stephenson had three blocks to lead the defense at the net.
 
During the Brandeis match, the Yellowjackets fell behind early, with 25-20 and 25-19 set losses, but rallied back, forcing a winner-take-all fifth set on the back of 25-23 and 25-18 set wins. In the fifth, the Judges (10-14, 1-6 UAA) emerged with the victory, squeezing out a 15-11 win.
 
The key run for the Judges in the opening set was a 6-1 spurt, going from down one at 15-14, to up four, sitting at 20-16. Rochester got back within two, 21-19, following a Brandeis service error, but the Judges fended off the Yellowjackets down the stretch winning 25-20.
 
In the second set, the Judges smacked down five blocks, contributing to several attack errors by the Yellowjackets, leading to a Brandeis 25-18 victory.
 
Rochester began to battle back in the third, with the teams exchanging multi-point runs throughout the set. Three straight kills, by Stephenson, Balaskas and Bergeron gave URochester an 18-16 lead. Brandeis responded by getting five of the next six points to go up 21-19 before another 3-kill stretch by Rochester put the 'Jackets back on top by one.
 
Bergeron, Kraemer and Ellen Porter had the late kills to move the score to 22-21 Rochester. The teams traded the next four points to give the Yellowjackets a set point before a bad set by Brandeis proved to be the clinching point for Rochester.
 
The Yellowjackets got off to a fast start in set four, jumping in front 9-3. Lydia Weeks and Bergeron had early aces in the set for UR. After a 4-point burst, aided by kills by Stephenson (two) and Nover-Estes, Rochester led 15-6, with the Yellowjackets being able to hold the Judges at arms reach the rest of the way, eventually posting a 25-18 set win.
 
In the final set, Brandeis went ahead early, leading 4-1. The Yellowjackets battled back, eventually getting within one, down 12-11, after back-to-back kills from Nover-Estes. The Judges responded though and clinched the match by scoring the final three points to post the 15-11 win in the tiebreaking set.
 
Three players, Bergeron, Nover-Estes and Stephenson had solid games, finishing with double-digit kills. Bergeron had 17 kills and a team-high 20 digs, along with 4 aces. Stephenson finished with 11 kills and six blocks, while Nover-Estes smacked 12 kills.
 
Kraemer added six kills and two acces, while Weeks picked up 15 digs along the back line. Balaskas dished out 43 assists and had six digs in the match, marking the fourth match in the last five the junior had at least forty helpers.
 
Rochester closes out its regular season in two weeks, hosting Buffalo State and Union in a tri-match on November 8 at the Louis Alexander Palestra. The following weekend, the Yellowjackets return to UAA play, competing in the conference tournament at Brandeis.