BEVERLY, Mass. -- The Wheaton College women's volleyball team suffered a 3-2 loss to host Endicott College this evening at MacDonald Gymnasium in Beverly, Mass. The Lyons fall to 8-4 on the season, while the Gulls improve to 6-3.

Wheaton won the first two sets, 25-20, 25-20 and owned leads of 19-12 and 24-21 in the third set, but Endicott came back to win the frame, 27-25, and then came all the way back to win the match with 25-23 and 15-10 wins in the fourth and fifth sets, respectively.

Junior right side hitter Bailey Madrzyk (Barrington, Ill.) and sophomore outside hitter Annah Shaheen (Portsmouth, N.H.) each put down 15 kills to establish career-highs for both players and lead the Lyons. Madrzyk owned a .300 hitting percentage, served for two aces and made three block assists, while Shaheen hit .205 and registered an ace. Sophomore setter Zoë Franz (Noblesville, Ind.) directed the offense with a personal-best 47 assists to go with 10 digs, while senior outside hitter Adara Hamilton (Mercer Island, Wash.) spiked for 12 kills, served up three aces and got down for 12 digs. Sophomore outside hitter Julianna Flack (Saint Petersburg, Fla.) was incredibly efficient with a .529 hitting mark to fuel a career-high nine kills.

Senior outside hitter Amanda Gilbert (Hopkinton, Mass.) led all players with 19 points, including 15 kills, three aces and two assisted blocks for the Gulls. Graduate student Meghan Frederick (Sunapee, N.H.) swung for 12 kills on a .455 hitting clip and added five block assists, while first year outside hitter Riley Donahue (South Windsor, Conn.) recorded nine kills, five aces, seven digs and a block assist. Junior setter Lauren McGrath (Franklin, Mass.) set for 41 assists to go with eight digs and an ace for Endicott.

The opening set saw five lead changes before Wheaton took the lead for good at 12-11. The Lyons took their largest lead of the frame at 18-13 and maintained that cushion throughout the remainder of the set.

Wheaton never trailed in the second frame and led 17-12 late in the session. The Gulls came within 20-18, but Wheaton put together a 5-2 run, including two kills from Hamilton, to close out the set.

Endicott scored two of the first three points of the third set, but the Lyons quickly took the lead and held the advantage for the rest of the set, before sitting on match point for three straight possessions. The Gulls went on a three-point run to knot the set at 24-24, before a service error gave Wheaton a chance to bring the contest home at 25-24. Three unanswered points, including a kill from Frederick and an ace from Donahue sandwiched around an attack error from the visitors, gave Endicott a 27-25 set win and the momentum for the rest of the match.

The Gulls carried their confidence into the fourth set, leading for the first part of the frame before holding an 11-10 edge. Two attack errors gave the lead to Wheaton at 12-11, but Endicott ripped off four straight points to take a 15-12 margin. The Gulls continued to hold a slim edge for most of the set and led 22-20, before a three-point strike, including a pair of kills from Hamilton, gave the Lyons a 23-22 edge. Endicott showed its resiliency again, scoring the final three points of the frame, including the final two kills from Donahue and Frederick.

The Gulls scored the first three points of the final set and never trailed. Wheaton closed to within 9-8 following an Isabel Coca (San Marcos, Calif.) ace, but Endicott scored six of the next seven points, capped by a Gilbert ace to win the match.

The Lyons return to action on Saturday, September 25 when they host New England Women's & Men's Athletic Conference foe United States Coast Guard Academy at 11:00 a.m. on the court at Emerson Gymnasium as part of a tri-match with University of Massachusetts Dartmouth. The Gulls play again on September 25 when they host Suffolk University at 1:00 p.m. in a Commonwealth Coast Conference match.