BRUNSWICK, Maine – The Wheaton College (Mass.) women's volleyball team fell in three sets to host Bowdoin College, 25-17, 25-22, 25-18, this afternoon at Morrell Gymnasium in Brunswick Maine.

The Lyons slip to 11-10 on the season, while the Polar Bears improve to 9-8.

Bowdoin hit .226 for the match and owned a .195 or better clip in each of the frames. The home team also fired nine aces and allowed just one from Wheaton.

Sophomore outside hitter Celina Henn (Atwater, Calif.) led the Lyons with 12 kills and committed just one error to compile a .297 hitting mark and added 10 digs, while classmate Sydney Lyon (Weston, Conn.) put down 11 kills to go with 11 digs. Senior setter Julianna Flack (Saint Petersburg, Fla.) directed the offense with 26 assists in addition to eight digs and a block assist and first year libero Jackie Hochberg (Tampa, Fla.) picked up a team-high 14 digs.

First year outside hitter Skye LaMendola (Farmers Ranch, Texas) led all players with 16 kills on a .324 hitting mark for the Polar Bears and picked up 10 digs. First year middle blocker Haley Campau (Louisville, Ky.) swung for nine kills and hit .375 to go with four digs and a pair of aces, while sophomore outside hitter Mina Mittler (Foster City, Calif.) put away nine kills and recorded three digs. Senior setter Ella Haugen (Edina, Minn.) posted 36 assists and 13 digs, while firing a pair of aces and junior libero Maya White (La Cañada Flintridge, Calif) got down for 18 digs and served for a trio of aces.

Wheaton held a 7-6 edge in the opening set, but a 5-0 run gave Bowdoin the lead for good at 11-7. The home team maintained a 15-10 margin, before going on a 9-4 burst, behind four kills from LaMendola, to take a 24-14 lead. The Lyons scored the next three points, but the Polar Bears took the set at 25-17.

Lyon put down a kill to pull Wheaton to within 9-8, before a 10-3 stretch, fueled by two kills from Campau, gave Bowdoin a 19-11 advantage. The Polar Bears looked primed to take a 2-0 match lead with a 23-14 advantage, but Wheaton put together a furious 8-1 run, including three kills from Lyon, to close to within 24-22. LaMendola put down the final kill to give the home team the set and a step closer to the match victory.

Bowdoin held an 8-7 lead early in the third frame, before scoring four straight points to take a 12-7 advantage. The home team led by at least three points the rest of the way. Lyon spiked for a kill to pull the Lyons within four at 22-18, but the Polar Bears scored the final three points for the win.