Newark, Del. - The RMU volleyball team opened its 2023 season Saturday at the Blue Hen Invitational in Newark, Del., falling to Loyola (Md.), 3-1, at the Bob Carpenter Center.

With the loss, the Colonials fall to 0-1 to open the campaign as the Greyhounds improve to 2-1 on the season.

MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
Loyola began the opening set by scoring the first four points of the afternoon before RMU rattled off four consecutive scores, two coming off kills from freshman Natalie Stepanovich and senior Abby Ryan. The two squads went back and forth before the Greyhounds took a 14-12 lead midway through the opening stanza. RMU would rally with three straight points, off a kill from graduate student Rosina Esposito and a service ace by classmate Allena Carmody, to regain a 15-14 advantage. Neither team could take bigger than a two-point lead before the Greyhounds scored three straight points to claim a 33-31 win in set one.

SET TWO
Loyola jumped ahead early in set two, gaining a 10-4 lead while using seven kills during the run. The Colonials would score three of the next four points on kills from Esposito and Stepanovich to trim the deficit, 11-7. The two squads would trade the next eight points before the Greyhounds went on an 8-0 run to open up set two, and grab a 2-0 lead in the match.

BOUNCE BACK
The Colonials bounced back in set three after tallying 15 kills with just four errors. The duo of Stepanovich (6) and Ryan (5) combined for 11 kills in the set while the team posted a .289 hitting percentage. After an opening point by Loyola, RMU netted three straight scores, two coming off back-to-back kills from Ryan. The two squads traded the next six points before the Greyhounds rattled off four consecutive points to gain an 8-6 advantage. After taking a 10-8 lead, freshman Azra Eric began the surge as the Colonials went on a 9-1 run to take its biggest lead of the set, 16-11. During the run, Stepanovich acquired three kills while senior Emma Brown, and junior Hillarie Adams netted one. Loyola responded by scoring three of the next four points before recording four straight scores to knot the score at 19-19. RMU would hold steady as it scored six of the final 10 points, capped off by a kill by Esposito to take the set.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS
Natalie Stepanovich enjoyed a productive season debut for the blue and white, carding 15 kills and nine digs while registering a .270 hitting percentage. She tallied six kills in set three alone while also collecting a pair of service aces. Abby Ryan recorded 12 kills and seven digs on the afternoon while Rosina Esposito carded seven kills. Emma Brown finished with six kills and a block while junior Ashleigh Wallin (17) and sophomore Kaitlyn Brown (11) combined for 28 assists on the evening. Both Wallin and Brown registered nine digs each while Carmody recorded a team-high 16 digs and five assists.

UP NEXT
RMU returns to action Sunday in the Blue Hen Invitational with a pair of matches. The Colonials open against Niagara at 11:00 a.m. before concluding the invite against the host Delaware at 2:30 p.m. at the Bob Carpenter Center.

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