ALFRED, NY – University of Rochester women's volleyball fell in straight sets: 26-24, 25-23, 25-20, to the Alfred University Saxons on Wednesday evening inside Terry S. Galanis Family Arena.
 
Isis Pribble got the scoring started in the opening set with a kill from Juliette Azzariti, but it'd be the Saxons who opened up an early lead. Three-straight Alfred kills gave the Saxons' their first lead of the night, as the home squad led by as many as four in the early going before Ladi Iya called a timeout.
 
Out of the timeout, Rochester scored the next four points to pull within one, with kills from Claire Feczko and McKenzie McDonald cutting Alfred's lead to a point.
 
Shortly thereafter, the Yellowjackets retook the lead in the first set on Azzariti's ace, while another short burst from URochester gave the 'Jackets a 17-14 advantage on Lilly Kraemer's ace. However, the Saxons would come right back with a run of their own and tie the set at 18, and then after ties at 19, 20 and 21, the hosts would take a timeout.
 
Back-to-back kills from Sancia Williams gave the 'Jackets a 23-21 advantage, forcing Alfred to take another timeout, but the Yellowjackets would score just one point the rest of the way. Delaney Sims' kill and a pair of Rochester attack errors helped tie the score at 24-all, before two more 'Jacket errors gave the Saxons the set, 26-24.
 
Despite a trio of early kills by the Saxons, set two would prove to be as competitive as the first. The early going saw ties at 4-4, 5-5, 6-6 and 10-10, before Alfred jumped ahead with a 5-0 run, taking advantage of a trio of attack errors.
 
Rochester kept things close, though, tying the score at 13-all on back-to-back kills from Feczko and Williams, while two more Feczko kills after the Saxons again pulled ahead made it a one-point game, 17-16.
 
Following another tie at 18-all, the Saxons opened a 20-18 lead, forcing Iya to take a timeout, but two more Alfred kills out of the timeout made it a four-point Saxons' lead.
 
Trailing 23-20, a service error brought URochester back within three and the Saxons took a timeout. Cara Brathauar then brought up set point with a kill, but the Yellowjackets would hold off set point thrice, pulling within one on a pair of attack errors and Katie Westerheim's ace, forcing Alfred to take its second timeout.
 
Taylor Malone, though, would finish off the set following the timeout with a kill, to take the set for Alfred, 25-23.
 
Then, looking to finish off the sweep, the Saxons jumped ahead early, leading 5-0 before Rochester got on the scoreboard. And while the Yellowjackets responded with a run of their own and cut Alfred's lead down to just one multiple times over the third set, the Saxons led for the entirety of the final frame.
 
Another Feczko kill made it 17-16 Alfred, but two quick Alfred points forced the Yellowjackets to take their final timeout, and while Feczko sent over another kill, four straight from the Saxons would put the set and match out of reach, as Alfred took the third set, 25-20, to take the match, 3-0.
 
With the loss, Rochester falls to 3-13 on the year, while the Saxons move to 9-11 with the victory, their third in as many contests.
 
Williams led Rochester offensively with 13 kills, while Feczko tallied a career-high 11. Azzariti had a team-high 22 assists, while six different Yellowjackets sent over an ace.
 
Defensively, Lydia Weeks had a team-high 11 digs, while Paige Stephenson and Williams combined for UR's lone block.
 
As a team, the 'Jackets tallied 39 kills and a .189 hitting percentage, while Alfred hit .327 with 44 kills.
 
The Yellowjackets resume conference play on Sunday, Oct. 12 in Cleveland, OH with matchups against Carnegie Mellon and Case Western Reserve as part of the University Athletic Association Round Robin #2 beginning at 10:00 a.m.