LAWRENCEVILLE, NJ– The Rider University volleyball team claimed a set from Temple, but ultimately fell in four sets, 27-25, 26-24, 22-25, 25-18 Wednesday night in front of an Alumni Gym Volleyball record crowd of 829. The Broncs fall to 7-15 on the season, while the Owls improve to 10-12.
 
Down 5-2 in the first, the Broncs scored five-straight points on the serve of Makenna Mason (Hilton Head Island, SC/Hilton Head). The match went back and forth until tied 22-22, Carley McAleavey (Smithtown, NY/Smithtown West) had back-to-back block to give the Broncs a pair of set points. The Owls would stave off both set points, and another at 25-24 before claiming the first set with three-straight points.
 
Temple would be in control for the majority of set two, but trailing 18-14, Rider went on a 5-0 run during the serve of Keegan O'Connor (Weatherford, TX/Weatherford) to take a lead in the set. Molly Rohde (Hortonville, WI/Hortonville) would eventually give Rider a set point at 24-23 with an ace, but another three-point rally by Temple put the Owls ahead 2-0 with both sets needing extra points.
 
The Broncs refused to go quietly, opening the third on a 5-1 run. Leading 11-9, Rider went on a 5-0 run with a kill and an ace from Paige Giehtbrock (Clarkston, MI/Clarkston) and two kills by Rylah Robinson (Fairfax, VA/Robinson). With Rider leading 21-15, Temple went on a 7-2 run to pull to within one at 23-22, but the Broncs scored two straight to take the set.
 
The fourth set saw Temple pull away slowly with four separate 3-0 runs, but no runs of four or more points. Meanwhile, the Broncs would not string together more than two straight points and any time during the set.

QUOTES & NOTES
"Today's match echos some of the stuff that happened in Connecticut, where we had opportunities. We have to figure that out. We have to figure out how to finish and close out sets when we have leads. There were a lot of good moments too. They're a big athletic team, so we hung with them pretty well."
 
"There might be opportunities this weekend for other players to get in and show us what they can do, but it is just about how we trust our players to go in and be able to execute, even if it's somebody that hasn't played a lot. We're going to trust that they can do it."  – Head Coach Jeff Rotondo
 
"I was there just wanting to cheer for my teammates, waiting for them to get the big dig, the big kill, and just waiting for it to be my opportunity. It's always about trusting the process. I'm ready to fight and do better each day." – Sophomore Outside Hitter Rylah Robinson
 
- Temple extend its lead in the all-time series to 13-0.
- Robinson led the Broncs with 12 kills off the bench, hitting .400 in the match. It was her sixth match this season in double figures.
- Giehtbrock had her sixth double-double of the season with 11 kills and a team-high 15 digs.
- Mason and Ryley Frye (New Hope, MN/Robbinsdale Armstrong[UTEP]) had 17 and 10 assists, respectively to reach double figures for the 19^th and 16^th times this season.
- O'Connor had 14 digs to reach double digits for the 13^th time this year.
- Simone Langford (Hollywood, FL/Flanagan) had 11 digs to reach double figures for the sixth time this season.
 
BRONCS BY THE NUMBERS
- The Broncs hit .174 in the match, while the Owls hit .243.
- Rider had 50 kills in the match to 58 for Temple.
- Temple had a 64-57 edge in digs.
- Rider had a 9-7 edge in blocks, but the Owls held a 9-7 advantage in aces.

UP NEXT
The Broncs return to action Saturday, hosting Iona for Homecoming at noon.