FAIRFIELD, CT – The Rider University volleyball team fell on the road to Fairfield, 3-1, on Saturday afternoon in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) action inside Alumni Hall. Fairfield won by scores of 25-15, 20-25, 25-13 and 25-12.
 
The Broncs (13-14, 10-5 MAAC) saw their six-match winning streak come to an end, while the Stags (20-4, 15-0 MAAC) clinched the MAAC Regular Season Championship with the victory.
 
Rider got off to slow starts in the first, third and fourth frames on the day and Fairfield made them pay.
 
Offensively, freshman Morgan Romano (Oviedko, FL/Hagerty) paced the Bronc attack with a match-high 15 kills, while Jillian Chan (Watchung, NJ/Watchung Hills Regional) added eight kills.
 
In the middle, sophomore Anilee Sher (Poughkeepsie, NY/Spackenkill) registered 34 assists to go along with two service aces, two block assists and four digs. In the second set, Sher became the sixth player in program history to record 2,000 career assists.
 
On the defensive end, senior libero Rachelle Runyon (Aliso Viejo, CA/Aliso Niguel) had a match-best 22 digs.
 
NOTES & QUOTES
"First, congrats to Fairfield for clinching the regular season title. They are a phenomenally talented group and coached well. They will be tough to beat moving forward into the MAAC Championships. I also want to congratulate Anilee on her 2,000th career assist as a sophomore, that is a great accomplishment." – Rider Head Coach Jeff Rotondo
 
"I would say we didn't play or coach our best match today, and a lot of that has to do with the efficiency of Fairfield. They play a very clean game, and really execute at a high level. There were moments we could stay with them, but our moments of undisciplined play occurred to often. In closing, we have to learn and move on quickly, as we cannot afford to drop any further matches heading into the tournament. This will be a test of our mental fortitude to see how we rebound from this in only 22 hours." – Rotondo
 
- Despite the loss, the Broncs remained in second-place in the MAAC standings. Rider, Niagara and Marist are all 10-5 on the year and the Broncs hold tiebreakers against both the Purple Eagles and the Red Foxes.
- As a team, Rider had 49 points, 38 kills, three aces, eight blocks and 41 digs.
- The Broncs committed 34 attack errors in the loss.
 
BRONCS BY THE NUMBERS
- Runyon had 20 or more digs in a match for the 12th time this fall. She has 1,530 digs in her career and she is 40 away from moving into fourth-place in program history. She is also 10 digs away from becoming the second player in program history with multiple seasons with 500 digs.
- Morgan Romano now has 462 kills on the season. She is just the second freshman in program history with over 450 kills. Her 462 kills are the fourth-most in a single season in program history. It was her seventh straight match with 14 or more kills.
- Anilee Sher now has 961 assists on the year and she is averaging 10.79 assists per set. She is looking to become the first player in program history to have multiple seasons with 1,000 assists. Her 10.79 assists per set is also the second-best mark in a single-season in program history.
 
UP NEXT
Rider takes on Quinnipiac in conference play on Sunday, November 10. The Broncs are looking to complete the regular-season sweep of the Bobcats after topping QU, 3-0, earlier this autumn. With a win, the Broncs would also secure a spot in the 2019 MAAC Volleyball Tournament.