PHILADELPHIA, Pa. – The Bloomsburg University volleyball team dropped a 3-2 decision to non-conference opponent, Chestnut Hill University, Tuesday evening. With the loss, the Huskies fall to 9-11 on the season while Chestnut Hill improves to 4-11.
 
After dropping the first set, 25-18, the Huskies rebounded for a 25-23 win in the second. Chestnut Hill edged out the Huskies 25-23 in the third set before Bloomsburg rolled to a 25-12 win in the fourth. Chestnut Hill hung on to finish out the match with a 15-10 win in the fifth and deciding set.
 
As a team, the Huskies finished with 15 total blocks, including eight block assists from senior Mia Nicholes (North Huntingdon, Pa./Norwin). Sophomore Liz Bopp (Ebensburg, Pa./Central Cambria) chipped in five block assists and a solo block while senior Grace Giza (Plymouth, Pa./Wyoming Valley West) had one solo block and four block assists.

Sophomore Aydan Espinal (Rock Hill, S.C./Rock Hill) handed out a career-best 32 assists in five sets while graduate student Alyssa Cianciulli (Royersford, Pa./Pope John Paul II) posted 41 digs for BU. Espinal added a career-best 21 digs as well. Senior Sydney Buell (Yardley, Pa./Pennsbury) led the Huskies with 14 kills and had 18 digs and a pair of block assists while Bopp chipped in 10 kills as well.
 
In the Huskies second-set win, Bloomsburg built an early 6-2 lead and maintained the advantage until the Griffins cut the lead to 10-9. A CHC attack error and a block from Espinal and Bopp pushed BU's lead back to three, 12-9, before Chestnut Hill tied the set at 12-12. The Huskies pulled away with a four-point run thanks to a kill from Buell, senior Grace Giza (Plymouth, Pa./Wyoming Valley West), Bopp, and senior Mary Kate Mooney (Royersford, Pa./Pope John Paul II). The Huskies never let the Griffins back into the set as they maintained at least a point advantage for the rest of the set. A kill from Buell handed Bloomsburg its first set point at 24-22 but a kill from Henielys Ramos prolonged the set until Buell ended it with another kill from Espinal.
 
After a third-set 25-23 loss, the Huskies controlled the fourth set to force a fifth. Bloomsburg jumped out to a three-point lead to open the set before putting together a five-point run to extend their lead to 10-3. After Chestnut Hill chipped away at the lead to pull to within five, 11-6, Bloomsburg used another five-point run to extend its lead to 16-6. The Huskies used two different three-point runs in the final points of the set to take a 25-12 set win and even the match at 2-2.
 
The Griffins held a steady lead for the fifth set to close out the match with a 15-10 win.
 
Bloomsburg gets back to action on Friday as the Huskies travel to Lock Haven University. The Huskies begin the second half of their Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) East schedule with an 8:00 pm match.