HACKENSACK, N.J. — Mercyhurst lost to FDU 3-1 on Saturday, falling 25-21, 22-25, 15-25, 23-25. The Lakers took leads in the fourth set after trailing by three and later by two, but the late push was not enough to extend the match.
Mercyhurst erased a 20-17 deficit in the opening set and won eight of the final nine rallies to take the set 25-21. Earlier, the Lakers fell behind 4-0 before
Julia Shepherd supplied three early kills, then
Ava Carney and
Payton Melin combined on a block to tie the set at 8-8 before Melin's kill put the Green and Blue ahead 10-8. FDU later moved back in front and led 20-17, but
Roslyn Guerra had two kills around an
Alyssa Krause service ace, and Guerra teamed with Carney on a block to give the Lakers a 21-20 edge. After FDU tied it at 21-21, Carney answered with a kill from Krause, and the Green and Blue closed the set on three straight FDU attack errors while
Anna Logan served.
The Lakers erased an early 10-4 deficit in the second set, using kills from Melin,
Mia Mattingly, Guerra and Carney before Krause's service ace tied it at 12-12. FDU had created the gap with a serving stretch that included three straight aces, but the Lakers answered with a block from Guerra and Mattingly and multiple side-out swings to get back into the set. After FDU moved ahead 19-14, the Lakers again narrowed the margin, with
Madison Miner and Mattingly combining on a block before Mattingly's kill and an FDU bad set made it 20-19. FDU reached 24-20, but Guerra and Melin delivered consecutive kills before the home side closed out the set, 25-22.
The Lakers dropped the third set 25-15 after FDU answered Shepherd's opening kill with five straight points and kept the Lakers from sustaining a long run. Carney helped the Green and Blue break through early with kills at 5-2 and 6-3, and Miner, Guerra and Melin added kills as the Lakers worked from a 13-5 deficit to 15-10. Carney and Shepherd later put down kills from Krause assists, bringing the Green and Blue to 18-12 and 19-14, but FDU followed with five consecutive points to reach 24-14.
Kalyani Olive extended the set with a kill before FDU closed it on Ava DeGuzman's kill.
The Lakers battled back late to move ahead 22-20 in the fourth set, but FDU scored the final three points to take the set 25-23. Earlier, after falling behind 10-7, Mercyhurst answered with a Carney kill and two Logan service aces around an FDU error to go in front 12-11. FDU later built a 17-13 lead before Shepherd, Miner and a Miner block helped the Lakers close the gap. Carney tied the set at 20-20, Shepherd followed with a kill for a 21-20 lead, and Guerra added another kill before FDU recovered to finish the set.
Carney recorded 11 kills while hitting .350 and added two blocks. Shepherd matched the team lead with 11 kills and 12 points, adding four digs and a solo block. Krause finished with a team-high 22 assists, 10 digs and two service aces.
Sydney Forcht collected a team-best 14 digs and added three assists.
The Lakers return to the court when they face Stonehill on Friday, Oct. 9. Coverage is set to begin at 6 p.m.
View the 2026 schedule
here.
