Bryant falls to UConn, Columbia Saturday on road

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – Junior libero Debora Magalhaes (Belo Horizonte, Brazil) recorded a career-high 35 digs against UConn while senior Elena Lohr (Loveland, Ohio) paced the Bulldog offense with 29 kills on the day but the Bryant University volleyball team would drop a pair Saturday at the UConn Tournament.

The Bulldogs (3-14) dropped a 3-1 decision to the host Huskies (7-3) in the early match and fell to Columbia (4-5), 3-0, in the nightcap. Magalhaes finished the day with 51 digs to earn all-tournament team honors, adding 16 against the Lions.

Against UConn, Lohr led the Bulldogs and the match with 19 kills as one of three Bryant players to finish in double figures. She was joined by sophomore Sara DePouw (Oconto, Wis.) (11 kills) and rookie Natascha Scarff (Geneva, Switzerland), who registered a career-high 10 kills in her first-career double-double performance (11 digs). The frosh was one of three players to serve up a pair of aces, joined by Lohr and sophomore Carissa Gould (Woonsocket, R.I.). DePouw also led the team on the block with five stuffs, while redshirt-freshman setter Vika Nesterov (Kfar Saba, Israel) put up 44 assists with nine digs and six kills.

The Huskies – who won in four sets, 25-21, 27-29, 26-24 and 25-18 – were led by 13 kills from Immanuella Anagu and got 12 more from Devon Maugle. Jade Strawberry and Erika Thomas each contributed 11 kills in the victory. Brianna Datti picked up 18 digs, while Anagu's six blocks were a match high.

In the nightcap against Columbia, Lohr once again paced the Black and Gold with 10 kills but was the only Bulldog to finish in double digits, picking up the team's only double-double of the tilt (10 digs). Nesterov added 22 assists with seven digs and a pair of blocks, while Magalhaes's 16 digs were a side best. Scarff added 15 digs of her own to help guide the Bulldog defense, adding seven kills and two more aces.

Bailey Springer and Lanti Moye-McLaren posted 12 kills apiece with the latter recording one of two Lion double-doubles (11 digs). Jennifer Petrovich registered the other with 32 assists and 12 digs, while Charlee Dyroff's 17 digs were a defensive best on the match. Zoe Jacobs posted a match-high five blocks with eight kills to help lead Columbia to the 25-15, 25-18, 25-17 win.

The Bulldogs now move past 2014 tournament competition and move into single-match play starting Tuesday, Sept. 23 when they face off against Dartmouth on the road at 7 p.m.