MOON TOWNSHIP, Pa. -- The Robert Morris volleyball team, trying to break into the "W" column for the first time since Northeast Conference play began, couldn't have done it without an "A" for effort.

"Our effort was a lot better than it has been in the past. It's something we focused on all week in practice," senior outside hitter Taylor Lord said. "Like Dale always says, effort can cover up a lot of mistakes."

Lord drove home a season-high 16 kills on a .324 attack average and added nine digs for the Colonials, who hammered St. Francis Brooklyn in four sets (25-20, 25-22, 14-25, 25-17) at the North Athletic Complex Friday night. Robert Morris (7-11, 1-3) continued its long-standing dominance of the NEC rivalry by winning for the 38th time in 40 recorded meetings with the Terriers (5-13, 1-4).

"Our effort was very good. We made a couple changes in our lineup, and they responded," head coach Dale Starr said. "That's what you want, to have everyone paddle the boat in the same direction, no matter who's in, who's out, who's on, who's off, that sort of thing. I was really proud of our maturity and our effort tonight."

Rookie libero Nikolette Zanolli, who has provided depth behind accomplished senior Allie Yurkovich, was part of those adjustments, getting an infrequent start. Zanolli went on to lead RMU with 14 digs, while Yurkovich added eight.

Sophomore middle blocker Skylar Clements, who spelled Maria Alfano while the latter was recovering from injury during non-conference play, chipped in a team-high five total blocks and made four kills. Alfano, meanwhile, played the last two sets error-free and had the honor of collecting match point with her third kill of the night.

A different level of energy in practice this week seemed to pay off early for the Colonials in building a two-set lead. Three straight kills by Lord broke a 10-10 tie in the first, and sophomore middle blocker Emma Granger helped turn it into a 7-1 run.

Back-to-back service aces by Granger, who finished with a match-high four, pushed it to a 22-14 lead for Robert Morris. Granger, meanwhile, found her form with four total blocks and ten kills on a team-leading .529 average.

St. Francis Brooklyn cut it to 23-19 before Clements stunted their rally and Lord collected the first of her back-to-back set points.

"All I know how to do, when we have to fix things, is work," Starr said. "I put them through some tough practices this week. Normally, the day before a game, I don't put them through tough practices, but we went a full two-and-a-half hours yesterday, and we got after it.

"Our compete level has been really up-and-down. It was much, much better."

RMU set the tone effectively with a 6-1 start to the second set, aided by rookie right side hitter Emily Devlin, who quietly hit a nice .313 with seven kills and three digs. A Granger ace made it 12-5 at one point before a furious response by SFBK temporarily changed the complexion of things.

Undaunted by what turned into a 21-20 deficit, the Colonials rattled off four in a row before Lord put it away.

"We had really tough practices all week, and I think that was good," she said. "Coming off preseason, we had lighter practices because we were hurt, and we were trying not to overwork ourselves, and I think that bit us in the butt a little bit. We went all-out yesterday, and I think that did us well in the end."

While the third set, generally, was all Terriers, the fourth was all RMU all the same. An energized Whitney Brown delivered one of her two service aces for a 4-0 lead that the Colonials never surrendered, and Zanolli later got one of her own on a friendly bounce off the net for an 18-12 cushion.

Brown, the Pittsburgh-raised sophomore setter, meshed well with Lord on this night, recording 43 assists and three block assists and adding a pair of clever dump-ins to help the offense.

Robert Morris continues Homecoming Week with a Saturday evening match against defending NEC Tournament champion LIU Brooklyn. First serve at the North Athletic Complex is scheduled for 5:00 p.m. EDT, and admission is free.

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