Marquette Falls at Villanova

VILLANOVA, Pa. - The Marquette University women's volleyball team (12-8, 6-4 BIG EAST) fell in four sets at Villanova (16-5, 7-3 BIG EAST) Saturday evening on the road.

Natalie Ring led Marquette with 21 kills on .354 hitting along with nine digs and an ace, while Hattie Bray added 13 kills and hit at a .407 clip. Elena Radeff chipped in eight kills and seven digs, and setters Allie Korba and Isabela Haggard combined for 47 assists. Adriana Studer paced the defense with eight digs and two aces.

The Golden Eagles built a 14-12 advantage midway through the first frame before Villanova rallied to go up 20-17, forcing a timeout. Behind strong play from Studer and timely kills from Ring, Marquette battled through 17 ties and six set points, finally sealing the marathon set on back-to-back kills from Korba and Ring to grab the set, 35-33, and a 1-0 edge in the match.

After an early back-and-forth, the Wildcats used a 5-1 run to grab control and force a Marquette timeout early in set two. The Golden Eagles pulled within 17-17 following a pair of blocks from Julia Stanev and Ring, but Villanova responded with an 8-2 closing stretch to take the second set, 25-19, and even the match at one set a piece.

Villanova dominated the third set, using a powerful service run and relentless blocking to seize control early. Marquette struggled to find rhythm offensively despite a few bright spots from Ring and Bray, while Villanova's front line closed the set efficiently to take a 2-1 lead in the match with a 25-13 set three win.

Despite a late push from the Golden Eagles in set four, Villanova closed it out, 25-19, to take the match in four sets.

NOTABLES

Allie Korba earned her first start as a Golden Eagle, contributing 28 assists, four digs, and a service ace
Natalie Ring recorded her fifth match of the season of 20+ kills, finding the floor 21 times on Saturday