PITTSBURGH, Pa. – The 19^th-ranked Ithaca College women's volleyball team tipped off its final weekend of regular-season play on Friday night when it traveled to Pittsburgh, Pa., to take part in the Carnegie Mellon Invitational. Facing the tournament hosts in the opening match of the two-day event, the Bombers suffered their first defeat in nearly six weeks, falling in a four-setter to the Tartans (16-25, 25-20, 22-25, 15-25). The loss snapped a 13-match winning streak dating back to the middle of September, lowering IC's record to 18-6 on the year.
 
For third consecutive season, Ithaca and Carnegie Mellon clashed in a major high-profile non-league battle. Ithaca scored victories in both of the prior two meetings, besting a CMU outfit that ranked 14^th nationally in 2016 at the Franklin & Marshall Scramble and securing a huge win last fall over a Tartan squad that ranked sixth in the nation. Arguably, both victories and certainly in the case of the 2017 triumph, were primary cogs in IC earning a berth to the NCAA Tournament. Turnabout did end up being fair play on Friday night, as Carnegie Mellon made the nationally-ranked Bombers wear the shoe on the other foot in an impressive four-set victory that could pay major dividends to the home side's NCAA Tournament aspirations.
 
"We really have to give a lot of credit to Carnegie Mellon for tonight's match," head coach Johan Dulfer said following the match. "That is an extremely talented program, probably the best CMU team we have faced over the past three years. They really executed their game plan and kept us out of system for vast stretches of the night."
 
The Bombers have gotten used to imposing their will in recent weeks. During IC's 13-match winning streak, the team had only found itself trailing in a match four times, while in three of those contests Ithaca had rallied back to take a lead entering the latter two frames. However, matters did not come quite as easily against a CMU squad that was highly motivated in celebrating its Senior Night and homecoming this weekend. Behind relentless serving and red-hot attacking at the pins, the Tartans never allowed Ithaca to find a rhythm in tonight's match. Although the final kill count showed just a 52-to-47 advantage for CMU, the home side finished with a robust .257 team hitting mark, while IC mustered just a .138 success rate which was the team's third lowest mark of the season.
 
"Anytime you come up short in the serve-receive aspect of the game it really is difficult to win and that is exacerbated even more when you play a team as talented as CMU," Dulfer continued. "We were not confident in our passing much of the night and had to play out of system quite a bit. When that happens, you can get predictable and I thought Carnegie Mellon did a good job of capitalizing on that. At the end of the day, they played with more purpose and poise than we did. It is a tough lesson to learn, but we must take it to heart because pretty soon every match will be a must-win situation."
 
The troubles started right out of the gates for IC, as the team committed 11 attacking errors in the opening set, a runaway 25-16 win for the Tartans. Although the home side raced out to an early 9-4 lead in the game, Ithaca responded with a 6-0 scoring run to briefly take a 10-9 lead. However, the good vibes came to a screeching halt midway through the set. A 7-1 scoring run by the home side broke things open at 17-11, and while IC briefly cut the deficit to just four points, a subsequent 5-1 scoring surge by CMU put things out of reach.
 
Ithaca responded well in the second set to level the match at a set apiece in the early going. The Bombers initially started out the game strong, riding a 5-0 run that included two kills from junior outside hitter Taylor McCarthy, as well as kill from senior middle Katie Evans and a service ace from senior libero Tara Stilwell. While Carnegie Mellon whittled the early lead away midway through the game, actually taking a 16-14 lead, IC showed its resiliency with a 6-1 spurt that featured kills from five different players to pull back ahead 20-17. McCarthy and first-year pin-hitter Alison Lipton added kills down the stretch, while junior setter Caitlyn Floyd capped the 25-20 set win with back-to-back service aces.
 
The crucial third set was full of momentum twists and turns. Carnegie Mellon got off to the fast start, riding a 9-1 scoring run to race out to a commanding early advantage. But Ithaca roared back, ripping off an 8-1 surge of its own to pull ahead 15-13 at the midway point of the frame. Sophomore outside hitter Reagan Stone and Lipton each tallied two kills during the stretch, while senior middle Ruby Dyson chipped in a solo block. A subsequent 4-1 spurt by the Bombers, powered by two kills from Stone, one finish from McCarthy, as well as a service ace from first-year Jordyn Lyn Hayashi, widened the margin to four points at 19-15. Unfortunately, the momentum stalled from there, as CMU delivered the final counter-punch with 10-3 run over the final 13 rallies to comeback for the crucial win in the swing set.
 
Ithaca never recovered from the momentum swing. Riding the wave of confidence from the comeback win in the third, the Tartans came out firing in the fourth set looking to seal the match. CMU began the frame on a 7-0 run and IC never was able to recover. Although the Bombers four times cut the deficit to four points, an 8-1 stretch blew things open to the point of no return. Carnegie Mellon took the fourth set 25-15.
 
Leading the way for Ithaca was Stone, who finished with her sixth double-double of the year. She marked 15 kills and 15 digs, while she added three block assists and one ace on the evening. Lipton performed well on the opposite pin, posting her fifth double-digit kill outing of the year with 10 kills on .286 hitting success.
 
Providing more offense on the outside were McCarthy and first-year Jaelyn Hershberger. McCarthy notched six kills, while Hershberger tallied two kills and one block assist.
 
IC's middle struggled to find many gaps in one of the quieter outings of the season for the position group. Evans marked just five kills offensively, while adding one solo block and two block assists on defense. Dyson posted four kills on .300 hitting success, while she too matched Evans' defensive line with one solo and two block assists.
 
Floyd posted 35 assists on the night, while getting into the act with five kills on .235 hitting. She picked up her fifth double-double with 10 digs, as well as adding a solo block defensively.
 
The Ithaca backline was led by Stilwell, who finished with 24 digs on the night. She also added one service ace and a season-high six assists in the contest. Hayashi also hit double-digits with 11 digs and one ace, while senior Hailey Adler amassed seven digs and one assist. It was a hot-and-cold night for the group, as CMU was able force 11 reception errors among the trio. Sophomore serving specialist Delaney Runyon delivered strong serving, but finished with just one dig on the stat sheet.
 
"We talked a lot during and after the match about what we like to call the two-percent rule," Dulfer concluded. "Tonight, Carnegie Mellon just wanted it that little bit more and played with more energy, more passion, and more confidence. In order to get where we want to be, we need to be willing to give that little bit extra, that extra two-percent. At the end of the day, we will look to move on from tonight's lesson and look to bring that confidence and purpose into a big final day tomorrow."
 
Ithaca concludes its regular-season slate tomorrow afternoon with a doubleheader. First, IC faces Ohio Wesleyan in a 1:00 p.m. clash, while the team finishes the day with a big in-region battle against Brockport at 3:00 p.m.