CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. – The LIU Brooklyn volleyball team dropped two matches on the first day of the Boston College Invitational in Power Gym Friday afternoon and evening. The Blackbirds fell in an afternoon match to host BC, 3-1, (25-18, 23-25, 25-17, 25-19), before suffering a dramatic loss at the hands of Fresno State in the night cap, 3-2 (16-25, 25-16, 23-25, 25-21, 15-9).

LIU vs. Boston College
The Blackbirds, facing off against the home team in their season opener, fell to the Eagles, 3-1 (25-18, 23-25, 25-17, 25-19). Boston College used early momentum to rally from a dropped second set to the its first win of the 2016 season.

BC opened the match on a 5-1 run to take the early lead. First game jitters continued to plague the Blackbirds, as the host Eagles widened the lead to 10-5 before LIU called a timeout. Another 3-0 run put BC up, 14-6. The Blackbirds started to close the gap with a 3-0 run of their own, using three kills from senior Alex Larsen and sophomore Jiayi Zhang to cut the gap to 17-12, but the Eagles were able to maintain the distance. A kill off a block error ended the first set in favor of the home team, 25-18.

Set two started on an even footing, with the two teams trading points. Eventually, a solo block by freshman Filippa Hansson gave LIU the chance to earn some space. A service ace from freshman Emily Magee, and a kill from junior Alexandra Lilliquist did just that, giving the Blackbirds a 7-4 advantage. The home team would keep the set close, staying within three points of LIU throughout. The Blackbirds pulled away briefly, when a kill from Sonja Vukosavljevic and a service ace from Lilliquist made it 19-15, but BC would answer with two quick points to get right back in striking distance. Vukosavljevic would give the Blackbirds set point on a kill, 24-22, but BC answered back with a kill of its own to prolong the set. But LIU earned the win on the next point, capitalizing on a BC error to take the set, 25-23, and knot the match score up, 1-1.

The Eagles would open the third set on a 6-1 run, and LIU never came within four points, as BC won the third set, 25-17. The fourth set was a battle, as the two teams traded points back and forth. Midway through the frame, two 3-0 runs by the Eagles helped widen the gap to 17-12, and it was all the home team would need. Boston College finished out the set taking a 25-19 win, and the 3-1 match victory.

Junior Alexandra Lilliquist led the Blackbirds with 13 kills and two service aces. Freshman Filippa Hansson had 10 kills and three blocks in her LIU debut, while senior Alex Larsen led the defense with 16 digs and three blocks, along with eight kills and four assists. Senior Nicole Hopton had 32 assists for the Blackbirds.
 
LIU vs. Fresno State
In the second match of the day, the two teams were evenly matched, battling it out to the final point. Fresno State came on strong late in the game, and was able to take the win, 3-2 (16-25, 25-16, 23-25, 25-21, 15-9).

In the first set of the second game, the Blackbirds jumped out to a 10-5 lead on a kill from freshman Hansson, and widened the lead with back-to-back kills from Larsen and Lilliquist to make it 13-6. LIU continued to maintain the lead, and eventually used a kill from freshman Katharina Krepper and an ace from Natalia Rivera to widen the gap to 18-8. Though Fresno State would cut down the lead, in the end, a kill from Larsen took the set for LIU, 25-16.

After dropping the second set, LIU came back with a key win in set number three. Fresno State opened the set on a 6-1 run, and held a significant lead for the first half of the set. LIU was able to put the pressure on late, and used a 4-0 run to close the lead. Back-to-back kills from Lilliquist whittled the Bulldog lead to just 19-17. An attack error a few minutes later tied the score up, 21-21, and LIU took its first lead of the set shortly after, when a block from Hansson and Larsen made it 23-22. Larsen end the set just two points later with a kill, giving LIU the 25-23 set win, and a 2-1 advantage in the match.

But the Bulldogs came roaring back in set four, jumping out to another sizeable lead, and this time, holding on to it. As FSU took the 25-21 lead, momentum was cemented on the Bulldog side of the net. Fresno State wouldn't trail again. In the decisive fifth set, the Bulldogs went up early, 5-2, and stayed there. An attack error brought the Blackbirds within one, 6-5, but another FSU run would widen the gulf back up, and LIU was unable to recover. In the end, Fresno State won the fifth set, 15-9, and the match, 3-2.

Larsen led the team with 18 kills, six blocks and five digs, while Lilliquist had 15 kills and eight digs. Hansson had seven kills and 10 blocks at the net to lead LIU's defense, while Krepper had nine kills and five blocks. Freshman Natalia Rivera led the defense with 15 digs, while freshman Emily Magee also had double-digit digs with 10.