BROOKLYN, N.Y. - The LIU Brooklyn volleyball team fell to Sacred Heart in the Steinberg Wellness Center Sunday afternoon after winning the first set, 3-1 (23-25, 25-21, 25-20, 25-23). With the loss, the Blackbirds move to 4-11 overall, 1-1 in the Northeast Conference, while SHU moves to 2-0 in league action.

The game was close from the first serve, as the two teams would go back and forth through all four sets. The opening set started off with a 6-2 lead by the Pioneers, that eventually was widened to 10-4 before the Blackbirds would start to battle back. A 4-1 run by LIU, including back-to-back kills from both Alex Larsen and Alexandra Lilliquist brought LIU within reach, 10-12. From there, another 4-1 run by the Blackbirds gave LIU its first lead of the day, 14-13. Sacred Heart called a timeout, and coming out of the break, rattled off six straight points to regain control of the first set, 19-14. Another spree by SHU would give them a seemingly insurmountable lead, 23-16, but LIU wasn't done yet. The Blackbirds finished the set rattling off nine unanswered points to take the first set win, 25-23, and the early match lead, 1-0.

The second set was just as close from the get-go. After Sacred Heart went up, 4-2, LIU would come rallying back to take the lead, 6-5, on a Pioneer error. The two teams would go back and forth , including matching 5-0 runs that put the score at 15-14 in SHU's favor. From there, the Pioneers were only just able to hold on to the lead. After a 3-0 run gave them the 23-18 advantage, LIU once again rallied, but this time scored only three points before SHU would score the two needed points to take the second set, 25-21, knotting the match score up at 1-1.

Set three was a set of scoring sprees by both squads. Early on, LIU would use three straight points to go up, 4-3, before a 4-0 run made it 8-5 Sacred Heart. The Blackbirds would answer by scoring five straight points, and regaining the lead, 10-8. Sacred Heart had a block and four straight kills that would give them the 14-11 advantage, and the two teams battled from there. A late kill from Larsen kept LIU in the set once Sacred Heart was up, 23-20, but two quick points from the Pioneers ended set three, 25-20, and the visiting team had a 2-1 match lead.

The fourth set mimicked the third, with runs by both teams dictating the lead. LIU used a 5-0 run to go up, 12-6, but the Blackbirds wouldn't stay up long. A 7-1 run by the Pioneers tied the set up, 13-13, and the war waged on. LIU led late into the set, rallying back to go up, 22-20, and was about to force a fifth set, but SHU used one final push to end the set. A 4-0 run by the Pioneers made it 24-22. A late kill from sophomore Jiayi Zhang gave the Blackbirds a chance, but SHU had a kill on the next play, taking the set, 25-23, and the match, 3-1.

Junior Alexandra Lilliquist led the Blackbirds with 13 kills and eight digs, while senior Alex Larsen had a double-double, with 11 kills and 14 digs, along with three blocks and two service aces. Sophomore Jiayi Zhang added 10 kills, while freshman Amanda Hubbard paced the offense with 38 assists, and freshman Natalia Rivera had a game-high 31 digs. Freshman Filippa Hansson was a force at the net, with seven total blocks.

Up next, the Blackbirds take on local rival St. Francis Brooklyn, Saturday, October 1 at 1 p.m. in Brooklyn Heights, N.Y.