HAVERFORD, Pa. (September 3, 2017)  – Senior libero Sydni Horner set a new program record for career digs, but the Stevens Institute of Technology women's volleyball team dropped a pair of matches to nationally-ranked opponents Sunday to close play at the Haverford Invitational.

In the day's opening match, a rematch of the 2016 Hoboken regional final, No. 16 Eastern University used a fifth-set rally to defeat the Ducks 3-2 (18-25, 24-26, 25-18, 25-20, 10-15). In game two, No. 10 University of Mary Washington won the final two sets to hold off the Ducks 3-1 (21-25, 27-25, 19-25, 25-17). 

After collecting 32 digs in the opening match, Horner wasted little time in breaking the school record, recording her 2,102nd dig early in the first set against Mary Washington. The previous mark of 2,101 was set by Rachel Ostroff, who played on Castle Point from 2003-06. With more than 25 matches remaining, the Columbia, Maryland native still has a chance to finish her career among the top-25 career totals in Division III history.

Both Eastern and Mary Washington earned victories in their second match of the day. Eastern finished the weekend 3-1, while the Eagles remained perfect at 4-0.

Horner was named to the Haverford Invitational All-Tournament Team.

The Ducks will have an opportunity to again match up with Eastern later in the season, when the team's meet in late October's Eastern Invitational. The matchup on Oct. 28 will be Stevens' last regular season match before the Empire 8 Championship.

Volleys and Points (Eastern)

• Courtside scoring - no play-by-play available.
• The Ducks had less than 20 hours from the time their matchup with Haverford concluded to the start of the match with Eastern.
• Eastern defeated Stevens in straight sets in the program's NCAA matchup. 
• The Ducks spotted the Eagles a two-set lead before pulling away in the third set and rallying to win the fourth set to tie the match.
• In the final set, Stevens would claim a lead of 7-4, but Eastern would grab a one-point lead at the change.
• The  Ducks would draw to within 11-10, but Eastern's Caroline Shelby put down her 20th kill to reclaim a two-point edge for Eastern. Shelby was also named to the All-Tournament Team.

Volleys and Points (Mary Washington)

• After an opening Mary Washington ace, the teams alternated multiple-point runs until the a seven-point swing gave the Eagles a 17-12 lead.
• The teams traded points until sophomore Casey King put the team on her swinging arm, converting two kills and an ace to bring the Ducks back to within two (20-18). 
• Another back-and-forth battle saw the teams exchange six points that saw Mary Washington take a 24-20 lead.
• A Kendal Hall service error returned the serve to the Ducks, but a tandem block of a Taleen Mitchell attack closed the set.
• Stevens would the match at one, battling back from an early two-point deficit to take a 16-14 lead as freshman Jillian Roumbanis pinned Mary Washington back with effective serves.
• The closely-matched teams would tie eight teams over the remainder of the set, before a Shelby Stewart kill, a Mitchell ace and a block assist gave Stevens a 27-25 victory.
• The third set produced another back-and-forth affair in the early going with seven ties over the first 22 points.
• A block assist from Stewart and senior Emily Singleton pushed Stevens in front 13-11.
• Mary Washington then turned the tide of the match, scoring six straight points to seize a 17-13 lead. 
• The Eagles would keep Stevens at least two points behind for the remainder of the set, closing it out on a Stewart attack error.
• The final set saw Stevens score three straight points on a Singleton kill, followed by consecutive Stewart hits.
• The lead would be short-lived as Mary Washington pulled in front 6-5 on a ball-handling error.
• The Eagles ran off seven straight points to take a 15-7 lead. The Ducks wouldn't get any closer than six points over the remainder of the set.

Match Point (Mary Washington)

• After four straight points brought the Ducks to within seven points (24-17) in the fourth set, Peyton Dunow connected on her third kill of the set to close the match.

Inside the Numbers (Eastern)

• Sophomore Taleen Mitchell picked up her third double-double in as many matches with 13 kills and 14 digs.
• Sophomore Casey King notched her second straight double-double with 14 kills and 18 digs.
• Stevens committed six less attack errors and had six less attacks, leading to a slightly higher (0.145-0.110) attack percentage. 
• Sophomore Julie Greco set a new career high in the third consecutive match with 43 assists. The setter totaled 15 helpers as a freshman.
• Sophomore Shelby Stewart and senior Emily Singleton combined for 12 blocks, helping Stevens gain a 9-6 edge.
• King added five aces for the Ducks, who totaled 12 as a team.
• The Stevens rally began in the third set as tight play at the net forced Eastern into a negative hit percentage.

Inside the Numbers (Mary Washington)

• Stevens was outhit (0.187-0.156) for the first time this season.
• Three players: freshman Sara Hain, King, and Singleton recorded double-digit kills. King added 14 digs for her third straight double-double.
• Sophomores Emily Piekarski and Kristen Edmiston saw their first action of 2017.
• Stewart continued to show a knack for altering shots, blocking seven balls to bring her season total to 22. She set the program's single-season record for blocks as a freshman.
• Mary Washington showed a keen sense in the serve-receive game, forcing 13 receive errors to lead to 13 aces.

Coach Speak (McShea)

• "Today's matches were a good test this early in the season. Both teams were very dynamic and caused us to work hard for every point."
• "Eastern really found a groove with their offense in the fifth and Mary Washington serves us tough."
• "We are coming out of these losses feeling confident and proud of how hard we fought and how well we executed. We're looking forward to putting everything we learned about this Stevens team into practice this week and getting better."

Unsung Heroes

• "Sydni Horner was incredible today. She broke the school record for digs against Mary Washington and she played every point like the record holder. Mary Washington made an adjustment and started to swing away from Sydni because they couldn't score against her.
• "In the match with Eastern, Sydni's passing was very steady. She rose to the challenge today."

Up Next

• Stevens returns to the court Sept. 6 for a non-conference match with Hunter College at 6 pm.
• Hunter took part in the Hoboken Regional during the 2016 NCAA Tournament, but fell to Ramapo in five sets.
• The Ducks swept the Hawks on Sept. 7, 2016.
• Stevens has won the last 13 meetings between the programs dating back to 2002, including three-set sweeps in the last five matches.

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