The Case Western Reserve University volleyball team lost both its matches at the second University Athletic Association Round Robin hosted by New York University at the John A. Paulson Center in Manhattan, New York, on Sunday.

CWRU fell to Brandeis University in five sets (23-25, 28-26, 25-23, 22-25, 13-15) and 10th-ranked Washington University in St. Louis in three set (16-25, 16-25, 15-25).

The Spartans fell to 9-10 this season and 1-4 in UAA play, while the Judges improved to 8-11 overall and 1-4 in the UAA and the Bears improved to 13-3 this season with a 3-1 mark in the conference.

Stats and Standouts

• Senior Emily Goodpaster led the team with 22 kills, including 16 against Brandeis, with first-year Maya Zarow also adding 16 in the match and junior Madeline Halter contributing 13
• Junior Sophia Datto had a team-high 21 digs in the first match and eight in the second with senior Sude Naz Item digging out 23 attacks across the two matches. Item also had three service aces in the opening match
• Junior Avery Basinger paced the squad with 33 assists across the two matches as junior Elena Esquivel added 29
• Sophomore Isabel Haytayan had seven blocks against Brandeis with Zarow and Halter adding four each

CWRU 2, Brandeis 3 (23-25, 28-26, 25-23, 22-25, 13-15)

First Set (23-25)

• The teams traded points early before Goodpaster put the Spartans ahead 10-6 with a kills
• Brandeis tied the score at 11 with a 5-1 run
• The Spartans reclaimed the lead on a kill by Zarow, but the Judges took a 16-15 advantage with a kill a few rallies later
• A kill by Goodpaster, service ace by first-year Sophie Bell, and block by Goodpaster and first-year Ava Felgar put the Spartans ahead by two, 18-16
• Brandeis won four of the next five points to retake the lead
• CWRU reclaimed the edge with a kill and a block and tied the score at 22 on a kill by Halter
• An attacking error gave the Spartans a 23-22 lead, but the Judges ended the set with three points in a row to take a 1-0 lead in the match

Second Set (28-26)

• Trailing 9-7 in the second stanza, Brandeis won seven points in a row to take a five-point lead
• CWRU still trailed by five late in the set, 22-17, before the Spartans mounted a comeback on the service of Basinger and Goodpaster
• Case Western Reserve won seven of the next eight points to serve for the set, ahead 24-23
• The teams traded the next six points with Brandeis fighting off three set points
• However, an attacking error by the Judges ended the set with the score 28-26 in favor of CWRU

Third Set (25-23)

• Brandeis had a long run in the middle of the pivotal third set, winning eight of 10 points to move an 8-8 tie into a 16-10 lead
• Case Western Reserve responded with a 7-1 run of its own, getting three consecutive service aces from Item to tie the score at 17
• Brandeis reclaimed the edge with a 5-2 run
• A Goodpaster kill ignited a 5-0 CWRU run, giving the Spartans a two-point lead
• Brandeis fought off one set point before a service error ended the set in favor of the Spartans

Fourth Set (22-25)

• Needing to win the fourth set, Brandeis led by five 16-11 in the middle of the stanza
• CWRU cut its deficit to just one, 17-16, with Zarow and Goodpaster getting kills in a 5-1 run
• An ace by Esquivel later in the set brought the Spartans back within one, 22-21, but the Judges won three of the final four points to force a fifth set

Fifth Set (13-15)

• Brandeis took an early 5-2 lead before a kill by Zarow and ace by Esquivel brough the Spartans within one
• The Judges expanded their lead by to three, 11-8, on a service error, but followed by a service error and kill from Halter to make the score 11-10
• Halter again cut the deficit to one, 12-11, before Brandeis scored points on a kill and ace
• The Spartans fought off two match points with kills from Halter and Zarow, but a block on the next rally finished the set for Brandeis

CWRU 0, #10 WashU 3 (16-25, 16-25, 15-25)

First Set (16-25)

• With the score tied at five, WashU used a 6-1 run to claim an 11-6 edge
• A kill by sophomore Kate Williams and an attacking error by the Bears brought the Spartans within three, 11-8
• WashU then won the next 10 points to essentially put the set away
• CWRU fought off three set points with kills by Zarow, junior Sienna Olson, and Goodpaster, but could not continue the run any further

Second Set (16-25)

• The Spartans won six consecutive points on the service of Williams to take an early 6-3 lead in the stanza
• After WashU took an 11-8 edge, CWRU won four points in a row to reclaim a 12-11 lead
• Goodpaster had two kills, Haytayan added one, and Bell contributed a service ace
• After losing the advantage, the Spartans tied the score on a kill by Goodpaster
• The Bears responded by winning six of the next seven points, and Case Western Reserve could only cut the deficit to four, 20-16, before WashU closed the period with five points in a row

Third Set (15-25)

• The Bears started the third set on a 10-4 run and led by nine, 14-5, just five rallies later
• Halter brought the Spartans back within seven, 16-9, before a 5-1 WashU run gave the Bears an 11-point lead
• Case Western Reserve trailed by as few as eight points later in the set, eventually falling 25-15 to close the match

Spartan Notes

• CWRU lost for the first time in its last 11 matches against the Judges and for just the second time in the previous 26 meetings between the schools
• The match against the Judges was the third consecutive five-set match for Case Western Reserve
• Goodpaster set a career high with 16 kills and 17.5 points against the Judges, while logging her second double-double of the season with 14 digs in five sets
• Haytayan had a career-high seven blocks against Brandeis, the second-most in a match by a Spartan this season
• Esquivel made her season debut on Sunday

Up Next

The Spartans will look to stop a three-match losing streak as they return home for a non-conference match on Wednesday, October 14. CWRU hosts crosstown rival John Carroll at 7 p.m.