CHARLESTON, W.Va. – The Bloomsburg volleyball team dropped a pair of matches at the Golden Eagle Invitational on Friday, falling in a five-set battle with D'Youville before losing to Seton Hill in three sets.
 
Bloomsburg (1-8) ended the day with 72 kills and 25 aces. Marlee Johnson (Newville, Pa./Big Spring) led the way offensively with 25 kills. Emily Gustie (Crofton, Md./Crofton) posted 18 kills while Sophie Wales (Port Matilda, Pa./State College) and Katie Kuehl (Aston, Pa./Archmere Academy (Del.)) combined for 16 kills.
 
Defensively, Gustie posted 33 digs while Tayla Miller (Bellefonte, Pa./Bellefonte) recorded 16 digs. Sophie Wales (Port Matilda, Pa./State College) amassed six blocks in the opening contest against D'Youville.
 
Game One – D'Youville 3, Bloomsburg 2 (10-25, 25-17, 12-25, 25-14, 15-17)
 
An early 5-1 run for D'Youville set the tone for the first set. Despite several short scoring bursts in an attempt to level the score for the Huskies, a 9-1 scoring stretch pushed the Saints to a 22-9 lead. A three-point run helped D'Youville claim the first set, 25-10.
 
Johnson recorded the first four points of the second set before Elise Adelman (Pataskala, Ohio/Watkins Memorial) put the Huskies ahead 5-4 on a service ace. The Huskies and the Saints battled closely throughout the set before a seven-point swing put the maroon and gold ahead 23-15. A kill from Kuehl and a service error from D'Youville lifted Bloomsburg to a 25-17 second-set victory.
 
The third set remained tied 3-3 before a six-point run gave the Saints a 9-3 lead. The teams traded points before another big run from D'Youville moved the score to 18-9. A 6-1 run allowed the Saints to take the third set 25-12.
 
Bloomsburg started the fourth set strong, jumping to an 7-3 lead. After a back-and-forth sequence brought the score to 9-7, the maroon and gold took a commanding 21-9 lead on a 12-2 run. Bloomsburg forced the fifth set with Gustie recording a kill to give the Huskies a 25-14 set win.
 
Bloomsburg and D'Youville traded four-point runs to open the fifth set. The Saints took a 13-10 lead and were in a prime position to close out the match before a four-point run from the maroon and gold give Bloomsburg a chance at the win. D'Youville put the pressure back on the Huskies with a kill from Madeline O'Brien and an attack error by Gustie. Adelman leveled the score at 15 apiece, fooling the defense with a dump at the net. Back-to-back kills from the Saints give them the victory, taking the final set 17-15.
 
Johnson finished the game with 14 kills while Gustie posted nine of her own. Katie Kuehl (Aston, Pa./Archmere Academy (Del.)) ended the game with six. Lydia Worthing (Tyrone, Pa./Bellwood Antis), Wales and Adelman each had five. Adelman recorded 36 assists and three blocks in the match. Wales had six blocks in the contest while Kuehl finished with three.
 
Game Two – Seton Hill 3, Bloomsburg 0 (15-25, 18-25, 23-25)
 
Seton Hill took the lead early with a 4-1 run before advancing the score to 9-3 on the back of a 5-2 run. Bloomsburg traded points with the Griffins to stay within reach and advance the score to 17-11. SHU jumped ahead further with a six-point run to give them a 23-11 advantage. A 4-1 run from the Huskies wouldn't be enough to swing the momentum around as Seton Hill took the first set, 25-15.
 
The second set start with a similar 4-1 run from the Griffins, however this time Bloomsburg responded with an 8-3 run to take the lead. The run saw four different Huskies record kills, including a pair from Gustie. Seton Hill took back the lead with a five-point run to make the score 14-13. Another five-point Griffins' run advanced the score to 19-13 before eventually taking the set, 25-18.
 
The third set saw Bloomsburg open with a 3-1 run before SHU leveled the score. An 8-2, Griffins' run pushed the score to 11-5. The Huskies responded with a 3-1 run before conceding three straight points to Seton Hill, bringing the score to 15-8. The maroon and gold went on an impressive 9-2 scoring stretch with three kills from Johnson to even the score, 17-17. The teams traded points until a three-point swing gave the Huskies a 22-21 lead. SHU used a 4-1 run to take the third set and the match.
 
Adelman recorded 23 assists while Johnson posted 11 kills. Gustie amassed nine kills and 15 digs.
 
Bloomsburg returns to action Saturday, September 21 for a 9:30 a.m. contest against Bowie State. The Huskies conclude the Golden Eagle Invitational at 3 p.m. with a match against the host, Charleston.