Columbus, Ohio – The Robert Morris University volleyball team's run in the 2015 NCAA Division I Women's Volleyball Championships was stopped short in First Round action by a strong, No. 12 seed Ohio State Buckeye squad, as the Colonials fell in three sets to the Big Ten opponent, 25-13, 25-16, 25-11, in St. John Arena on the campus of Ohio State University.
 
The 2015 Northeast Conference Tournament Champions' season ends with a 19-13 record, the most wins recorded in a season under head coach Dale Starr.
 
Ohio State (24-9) snapped RMU's seven-match winning streak and advance to the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament.
 
Juniors April Krivoniak and Arden Fisher led the Colonials with five kills apiece. Fisher posted a team-leading 10 digs and one block assist. Junior Leah Dunivan paced the RMU defense at the net with three block assists. Freshmen Taylor Lord and Allie Yurkovich combined for 18 digs, and Lord tallied one of the Colonials' two service aces on the night.
 
The Colonials struggled to capitalize on big points throughout the match, and could never quite swing the momentum in their favor. In the third set, Robert Morris stuck with the Buckeyes and fought to force a fourth set as they faced elimination while trailing OSU, 0-2. Following back-to-back kills from Fisher and Dunivan, RMU tied the score, 8-8, and an attack error committed by the home team put the Colonials in the lead, 9-8. But RMU could not quite get a rally going when the squad needed it most, and would only post two more points during the rest of the set.
 
RMU held an early 2-1 lead to open the match, but Ohio State responded with an 8-1 streak to run away with the frame.
 
Quoting Head Coach Dale Starr
On summing up the 2015 season…
Pride. I am extremely proud of these kids. I'm proud of how they came together with such a big split in our classes. We've got five upperclassmen and nine underclassmen, and the way that they came together [in the locker room] afterward, they're such a family. So it's really nice to see. And I'm really excited for the future.
 
On the message to the team after the match…
I told them I was proud of them. I told them I was proud of the way they played not only tonight but throughout the whole season. Just a lot of the same things I've been saying all year. I'm so excited for the future and the fact that we bring 13 of our 14 back next year, it's going to be a really bright future for us. Now the work begins because I think defending [the Northeast Conference tournament title] is harder than winning it.
 
On the goal next season…
Obviously to get back [to the NCAA Tournament]. To  get back here and put on a better showing. I think there was a little bit of a shell shock from all of us. It's a big deal. I think there was a little bit of shock and awe. We did our best to minimize it, but these are 18-to-22 year old kids. It's a big deal. It was my first time here too, and I'm sure I made some mistakes in the preparation this week, so we'll try to get back here and we'll do this all again.
 
 
Stellar Season for Starr
The 2015 season was highlighted by head coach Dale Starr's first trip to the NCAA Tournament, his first 2015 Northeast Conference Championship title and his winningest season at Robert Morris.
 
Looking Ahead
The future is bright for the Robert Morris Colonials, as they lose one senior and return 13 of the 14 members of the 2015 roster in 2016.
 
 
Follow RMU volleyball on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter