Frostburg, Md. – The St. Mary's College of Maryland volleyball team battled through a tough, five-set match but fell to the host Frostburg State University Bobcats Friday night at the Frostburg Spooktacular.

"Give Frostburg credit, they are playing good volleyball right before playoff time," stated second-year head coach Jeremy Sands. "We fought down the stretch and overcame a big injury but just couldn't pull off the victory. We'll learn from this and work to be ready for playoffs."

The Seahawks (15-11, 5-4 CAC) had a quick start against the Bobcats (17-15, 5-4 CAC), taking a 1-0 lead in the match with a 25-14 first set win. St. Mary's looked to stretch its advantage to 2-0 and came out strong in the second, holding the lead for most of the set. However, Frostburg State responded with a nice run to claim a 25-21 set win and even the match at 1-1.

St. Mary's determination led them to a fierce attack in the third as the Seahawks notched a match-best 14 kills in the game in posting a 26-24 triumph and 2-1 match lead. The third set saw the score tied 10 times and the lead change three times. St. Mary's was able to hold on with a three-point rally for the win.

Senior middle hitter Mandy Goodspeed (Columbia, Md./Atholton) led the offense with a total of 18 kills for the match. Goodspeed was followed by senior outside hitter Autumn Fisher (Hagerstown, Md./North Hagerstown) who contributed 12. Junior Mimi Graf (Annapolis, Md./Broadneck) set up the court for the Seahawks with a total of 26 assists.

St. Mary's established the momentum in the fourth set with an early 7-5 lead. The Bobcats regained their composure, retaking the lead and using a 12-5 streak to close out the game for a 25-17 win, forcing the fifth and decisive set.

Frostburg never trailed in the decisive set, leading by as many as seven before recording the 15-10 set triumph for its third straight win.

St. Mary's finished the match with 81 digs as the Seahawk defense left it all on the court. Junior libero Carissa Hill (Lanham, Md./St. Vincent Pallotti) commanded the defense with a total of 24 digs for the match while Fisher added to the defensive effort with 13 digs.

The Seahawks will be back in action tomorrow, October 31 as they face The Catholic University of America at 11:00 a.m. and Stevenson University at 2:00 p.m. to conclude play at the Frostburg Spooktacular.

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