DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The Embry-Riddle volleyball lost in five sets for the first time in 2019 on Thursday night, dropping a 3-2 decision to Lynn, 20-25, 25-14, 25-13, 23-25, 15-11. The loss puts ERAU at 19-7 on the year and 12-7 in conference, while Lynn improves to 26-4 overall and 17-2 in SSC play.
 
Melanie Canfield led the Eagles with 10 kills and also tallied seven blocks while Jordan Schumacher chipped in with 10 kills and 11 digs. Jenna Bishop racked up eight blocks (one solo) as ERAU totaled 16 blocks as a team, which is tied for the 10th-most in a match in program history. Olivia Roa led all players with 36 digs and Alyssa Rudd recorded a team-high 28 assists.
 
The Eagles started strong, jumping out to a 7-4 lead in the opening set. After Lynn drew even at 9-9, ERAU went on a 7-3 run to pull ahead 16-12, and later used a 4-1 spurt to extend the lead to 22-16. The Blue and Gold held on from there, with an Amelia Hartnett kill closing out the first set at 25-20.
 
Lynn took a 7-3 lead early in set two and built it up to 14-5 before long. ERAU scored three straight to make it 14-8, but that was as close as the Eagles would get, as LU took the set by a 25-14 score.
 
Embry-Riddle held a 5-3 lead early in the third set, but a 5-0 run that became part of a 15-2 rally put Lynn in control, leading 18-7. The Fighting Knights won the set 25-15 to go up 2-1 in the match.
 
The fourth set was the first to go back-and-forth, with eight ties and five lead changes. A 3-0 run for Lynn gave the visitors a 15-14 lead, but the Blue and Gold responded with five consecutive points to take a 19-14 lead, which would prove to be the final lead change of the frame. The Fighting Knights came back to trim the deficit to one point at 24-23, but Bishop stepped up with a huge solo block to give the Eagles a 25-23 set win, sending the match to set five.
 
In the fifth set, Lynn used an early 3-0 run to take the lead, 5-3. The Eagles bounced back quickly, going on a 3-0 run of their own to take a 7-6 lead. LU counted with yet another 3-0 spurt, giving the Fighting Knight a 9-7 lead, which they would not relinquish. The two sides traded sideouts for the next eight points before Lynn finished the set and match with a final 3-0 run to claim the set, 15-11.
 
The Eagles will wrap up the regular season tomorrow night at home against Nova Southeastern. The match is slated for a 7 p.m. start, and ERAU's four seniors – Theresa Jordan, Olivia Roa, Alyssa Rudd, and Kristin vom Schemm – will be honored prior to the start of the match.