NEW LONDON, Conn. – The Connecticut College women's volleyball team opened NESCAC play against Colby College on Friday night, falling by a final score of 3-2 in a barn burner at Luce Fieldhouse. 

The Mules rallied from a set down to remain unbeaten on the season at 5-0 (1-0 NESCAC).  Colby won by set scores of 25-17, 26-28, 18-25, 25-23 and 15-13. 

Katherine Randall (Chicago, Ill.) paced Conn with 16 kills and added 12 digs. LJ Grant (New York, N.Y.) led Colby with a match-high 20 kills and 18 digs and also added four blocks, and Hannah Wyllie (Rockland, Mass.) finished with 13 kills and eight blocks, including a huge block that clinched match point in the deciding fifth set.

After Colby ripped off four straight points to close out the opening set, the visitors jumped out to an 11-6 lead in the second. Conn responded by winning six of the next seven points to tie things up at 12-12, and neither side led by more than three the rest of the way. However, the Camels fought off four set points down the stretch, and a big kill by Randall tied the score once again at 26-26. A pair of attack errors then gave the hosts the set and evened the match at 1-1.

Conn busted out to an 8-1 lead in the third and never trailed in the set. Colby eventually pulled to within four at 22-18, but the Camels wrapped things up behind a pair of errors, a kill by Randall and an ace by Olivia Dow (San Anselmo, Calif.).

Colby scored the first four points of the fourth set, but Conn quickly rallied back to even the score at 10-10. It marked the first of six ties in the stanza, with the final one coming at 22-22 following a kill by Amanda Kreidler (Aliso Viejo, Calif.). However, the Mules got a big kill by Wyllie to regain the lead for good, sewing up the set by winning two of the next three points.

Like every other set before it, the fifth proved to be a back-and-forth affair that featured nine ties and four lead changes. Colby took its biggest lead at 10-6, but Riley Lord (Exeter, N.H.) sparked a 4-0 Conn run with consecutive kills that helped even the score. The teams then traded points until it was 13-13, and the Mules pulled in front on an attack error. Wyllie then supplied a solo block on the final point of the night, securing the win for the visitors.

Lord finished with 10 kills for the Camels while Kreidler chipped in eight. Dow also handed out a team-high 22 assists while Julia Dailey (Charlottesville, Va.) led all players with 27 digs.

Conn (2-1 overall, 0-1 NESCAC) returns to action at home against Bates College on Saturday, September 17 at 2:00 p.m.