BOSTON – The Elon University volleyball team fell in a decisive fifth set against Colonial Athletic Association foe Northeastern on Sunday, losing 15-25, 23-25, 25-18, 25-20, 16-14. 
 
"Both teams competed hard this weekend in a couple of intense matches. We couldn't pull out a road win, but I'm proud of this team for how hard they fought both physically and mentally," head coach Mary Tendler said. "We will continue to work on things in practice to make our team better as we prepare for our upcoming midweek match." 
 
Elon is now 3-3 in CAA matches and 5-10 overall. With the win, Northeastern improved to 2-2 in CAA play and 5-8 overall. 
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Elon got off to a fast start, as the Phoenix raced out to an 18-9 lead in the opening set, with three of Northeastern's points coming off service errors by Elon. Kills by Leah Daniel, Jenn Krzeminski and Clara LaRue helped the maroon and gold win the final four points of the frame, as Elon won it 25-15. 
• After trailing 4-1 early in the second, Elon responded with a 6-1 run to take the lead. Elon's offense began to take over in the middle stages of the set, as the Phoenix finished with the second with 13 kills. Northeastern saved four set points late but Elon closed the set out on its fifth attempt, winning 25-23. 
• Northeastern won five of the first six points in the third set and never looked back, as the Huskies cruised to a 25-18 victory.
• The Phoenix took a 4-2 lead in the fourth set, but the Huskies won the next seven points to go ahead 9-4. Elon battled back to take a 17-16 lead on an ace by Alex VanWestrienen but Northeastern six of the next seven points to retake control of the set before winning it 25-20. 
• Elon took a 3-0 lead in the final set behind kills by Krzeminski and Daniel. With the Phoenix ahead 10-6 in the deciding frame, Northeastern rattled off eight of the next 11 points to take a 14-13 advantage. Elon saved a match point with a kill by Sydney Love but the Huskies converted on their second opportunity, clinching the set 16-14 to win the match. 

 
NOTES

• Leah Daniel finished the match with 14 kills. The senior has 1,444 career kills and is six away from tying Emily Hayes, Elon's Division I era leader in kills (1,450). She is also now 17 away from tying Velma Degree (1,461), Elon's all-time leader in kills. 

• Freshman Clara LaRue also had 14 kills, the fourth time in Elon's last five matches she has eclipsed 10 kills. 
• Lily Emlong posted a career-high eight blocks to go along with eight kills on 12 attacks. 
• Haylie Clark surpassed the 40-assist mark for the fifth time in Elon's last six matches, as the senior finished with 47. She also tallied 10 digs for her ninth double-double of the season. 
• For the second straight match, Jordan Gower paced the Phoenix with 18 digs.  
• Jenn Krzeminski registered five blocks, the sixth time this season the senior has had at least five in a match. Sydney Love also had seven blocks for the Phoenix. 
• Elon had 15 total blocks, the second most for the team in a match this season (16 against UNCG on Sept. 10). The Phoenix also outpaced the Huskies in assists (54-52) and digs (54-50).  
• The maroon and gold committed a season-high 12 service errors. 
• The Phoenix is now 0-10 all-time in road matches against Northeastern. 

 
UP NEXT
 

• Elon travels to Durham for its final non-conference match of the season against NC Central on Oct. 5. The match is slated to begin at 6 p.m.
• After a bye weekend, the Phoenix returns to CAA play with a series against Towson on Oct. 15-16. The Tigers are 16-0 (6-0 CAA) and received 30 votes in this week's AVCA Coaches Poll. Both matches at Schar Center are scheduled for 2 p.m.