DURHAM, N.H. – The Binghamton volleyball team (8-5, 0-1 America East) began America East Conference play by falling to New Hampshire (10-4, 1-0 America East) in straight sets Sunday at Lundholm Gymnasium.
In the close contest, the Bearcats lost the first two sets by two points each at 27-25 and 25-23, before New Hampshire closed out the match in the third 25-20.
Viktoria Dimitrova put up 11 kills for the Bearcats, while
Regan Kadel had 26 assists. On defense,
Eve Roman recorded a career-high 29 digs.
Binghamton raced out to a 10-4 lead in the first set, forcing UNH to call a timeout. During that run, Dimitrova had three kills. After the timeout, however, New Hampshire fought back with an 11-2 run to go ahead 15-12. The Bearcats kept up with the Wildcats, leading to a tie between the two teams at 24 apiece. Binghamton picked up the next point on an attack error by UNH, but the Wildcats closed out the set by scoring the final three points to take a 1-0 lead in the match.
In set two, it was New Hampshire who got out to a large lead early, holding an 11-3 advantage. Binghamton would not stay quiet, slowly cutting down the deficit. Eventually, the Bearcats got within one point at 24-23, with a chance to extend another set. But New Hampshire picked up a kill to close out the frame and extend its lead to 2-0.
Up 7-6 in the third set, New Hampshire scored six straight points to extend its lead to 13-6. Not to be outdone, Binghamton countered UNH with a 7-0 run to tie the set at 13. Both teams traded points until the Bearcats found themselves trailing 22-20. Then, the Wildcats scored the final three points to win the set, and ultimately, the match.
Binghamton returns home to host Bryant Saturday at 2 p.m., in the West Gym for Homecoming Weekend. Admission to all of Binghamton's home matches this season is free on behalf of
Hinman, Howard & Katell, LLP.
Hinman, Howard & Katell, LLP is the presenting sponsor of Bearcats Volleyball.
