Box Score

BOSTON – Squaring off against the top team in the CAA for the second consecutive match, the Northeastern women's volleyball team had one of its best defensive outings of the season against College of Charleston, but came up short to the Cougars, 3-1 (25-19, 21-25, 25-22, 25-22), on Wednesday night.
 
Natalia Skiba collected 32 digs as a member of the Huskies' back row, as the senior from Westmont, Illinois became the first player in program history to achieve multiple 600-dig seasons in her career. Skiba's current total of 617 digs also ranks as the third best single season all-time, and sits two spots behind her own NU single-season record of 684 digs, which she set in 2013.

After registering nine blocks against Hofstra last Friday, sophomore middle hitter Caterina Rosander sent back nine more Cougar attacks on Wednesday, finishing the match with two solo blocks and seven block assists. Alexa Armstrong had eight rejections on the night as well, as the Huskies outblocked Charleston at the net, 17.0-9.0.
 
Freshman Brigitte Burcescu eclipsed the 20-kill mark for the sixth time in 2014, and earned a double-double with 12 digs, four blocks, and two aces. Jamie Bredahl notched 24 assists and had nine digs, while Megan Kehoe picked up 13 digs in the Husky backcourt.
 
Three attackers ended the match with 10 or more kills for College of Charleston (21-9, 13-2 CAA), most notably Cara Howley who led the team with 18 kills, four blocks, and three aces. Melissa Morello, Kallie McKown, and Sloane White each had double-doubles on the night.
 
Northeastern (10-18, 2-12 CAA) found an offensive rhythm early in the first set against Charleston after trailing 3-1, and a kill by Burcescu helped spark an 8-2 run for the Huskies that put them ahead, 9-5. However, the Cougars were quick to bounce back, and regained the lead with a streak of five unanswered points to pull ahead, 10-9.
 
After a block by Rosander and Kristen Walding tied the set at 10-10, Morello hammered back-to-back kills, capping a three-point run for Charleston. Two more kills by Catey Warren and Sloane White extended the Cougars' lead, putting them on top, 15-12. Northeastern would close the gap to one at 16-15 and 17-16, but Charleston rattled off four kills and two blocks down the stretch to close out the first set, 25-19.
 
Trailing 4-1 in the second set, a thundering kill by Burcescu helped jumpstart a four-point run for the Huskies, and back-to-back kills by Dizon put Northeastern up by two at 9-7. Charleston was quick to tie the set back at 9-9 off Howley's second ace of the night, and two kills by Hannah Fry were overlooked by what was a 6-2 run for the Cougars that gave them a 15-11 edge.

Down by four, the Huskies maintained their composure, and strong defensive play above the net helped Northeastern whittle away at the Charleston lead. Both teams sided-out for seven straight points during the middle of the second set before the Huskies managed to string three points together to level the set at 18-18. Following a Cougar timeout, NU would score seven out of the last ten points in the set, coming away with the 25-21 victory.
 
Solid hitting by the Huskies' front row put Northeastern up, 6-3, at the start of the third set, but Charleston began to heat up, and threw down four kills and two aces as part of a 7-1 run for the Cougars. Trailing 14-10, Bredahl set Burcescu up for a kill, and a block by Armstrong and Walding two plays later brought the Huskies back to within one, down just 14-13.
 
Charleston was content with siding-out through most of the third set, but two more kills by Burcescu and two aces by Kehoe and Skiba tied the set at 21-21. NU would tie the frame again at 22-22, but three straight unforced errors by the Huskies handed the set to the Cougars, 25-22.
 
Throughout the fourth set, Northeastern demonstrated its ability to cover the court on the defensive end, winning several long rallies and forcing the Cougars to make low-percentage attacks. Trailing 14-11, Burcescu single-handedly helped keep NU in the match by swinging two kills and two aces that led the Huskies on a five-point run to lead 16-14.
 
However, three kills and a block by Howley helped turn the momentum Charleston's way, and the Northeastern could not manage to cut back into the deficit, as the Cougars took the fourth set, 25-22.
 
The Huskies will close out the 2014 regular season this weekend with two home matches at Cabot Center. Northeastern will host William and Mary on Friday, Nov. 14 at 7 p.m., and James Madison on Senior Day, Saturday, Nov. 15 at 4 p.m.