Volleyball team loses to UMBC in four sets

The Binghamton volleyball team fell to UMBC in four sets in an America East match at the RAC Arena in Baltimore on Oct. 19. The Bearcats (7-16, 4-3 AE) were upended by the Retrievers (11-13, 4-3 AE) 18-25, 14-25, 25-20 and 18-25, falling into a tie for third place with the hosts. The contest with UMBC kicked off the second half of Binghamton’s conference slate, as each team meets twice during the season.

“I just felt like we couldn’t get it together tonight,” head coach Glenn Kiriyama said. “I thought we under performed during the match and never really picked up the pace. We knew it was going to be a tough contest going in and we weren’t able to match their intensity.”

Binghamton was led by sophomore Kristin Hovie’s 13 kills. Senior hitter Iva Partaleva contributed double-digit terminations with 11. Sophomore setter Amanda Dettmann handed out 38 assists, while freshman Alexandra Warner, in her first start at libero, picked up a team-high 13 digs.

In the first set, Binghamton built a 10-6 lead, thanks to a 4-0 run ignited by a pair of kills from junior captain Grace Vickers. UMBC did not go away, however, countering with a 7-0 run to take a 13-10 advantage. The Bearcats went on a brief 3-0 run late in the frame to climb within four, 22-18, but were unable to get any closer than two, dropping the first set 25-18.

The two teams battled back and forth in the second set as the frame was tied seven times in the early going. UMBC broke away from Binghamton with a 6-0 run to take a 14-8 lead. The Bearcats continued to fight, responding with a 4-1 run sparked by a pair of Hovie kills to crawl within two. However, out of an UMBC timeout. the Retrievers went on a resounding 9-0 run to take a 24-13 advantage. A .111 hitting clip hampered Binghamton.

Binghamton was able to extend the match in the third set, racing out to a 7-3 lead capped by a Dettmann ace. A block assist from Vickers and Hovie extended the Bearcats’ lead and forced a UMBC timeout. The Retrievers battled back with a 4-0 run to trim Binghamton’s lead to three, 15-12. Determined not to go away quietly, kills by Vickers and Partaleva helped Binghamton put away UMBC in the third set,  25-20.

The Bearcats dug themselves a large hole in the fourth set as UMBC jumped out to a 6-0 lead. Binghamton battled back and forced multiple UMBC errors to trim the Retriever lead to just three, 12-9. It wasn’t enough however, as UMBC continued to apply pressure extending its lead to eight late in the frame. Binghamton attempted a late comeback with a 3-0 spurt, but couldn’t overcome their hosts, dropping the fourth set 25-18.