BETHLEHEM, PA. – The Ursinus College women's volleyball battled throughout the evening but eventually fell to Moravian University on Wednesday evening, 3-1 (26-28, 25-14, 15-25, 18-25).
 
With the loss, the Bears fall to 10-2 on the season, meanwhile the Greyhounds of the Landmark improve to 7-9 overall.
 
First-year Noelle Smits led the Bears with a team-high 12 kills and four blocks while senior Katie Cressman earned a double-double collecting 10 kills and 17 digs. Sophomore Rachel Bernard paced the offense with a season-high 29 assists and six aces. Emma Illovsky and Luca Walborn each impressed as Illovsky earned 15 digs, while Walborn collected 16 assists.
 
In the first set, Moravian jumped out to a 7-5 lead before a 3-0 Ursinus run gave the Bears an 8-7 lead. Ursinus used a 4-1 run behind a Caroline Sherman kill and two aces from Bernard to make the score 12-8. The Greyhounds responded with an 8-3 run to tie the match at 15 a piece after a service ace from Allie Ludlow. Each team traded points as Moravian led 20-19 before back-to-back kills from Haley Spotts and Madison Vinovrski gave the Bears a one-point advantage. First-year Reena Robinson followed up with a kill to give the Bears a 24-23 lead. Moravian earned the next points after back-to-back kills, but Cressman tied the match at 25 a piece for the Bears after a kill. The Greyhounds closed out the first set with kills from Sophie Bauer and Jenna Deegan for the 28-26 set victory.
 
Ursinus bounced back in the second set, jumping out to a 5-0 lead after Smits earned two kills while Bernard picked up two aces. Moravian battled back going on a 6-2 run to cut their deficit to just one after four straight kills from Makenzie Krasley. The Bears responded with a 9-0 run to make the score 16-6 after a trio of kills from Cressman, Bernard, and Spotts. Ursinus controlled the momentum for the rest of the set as Vinovrski earned three kills giving the Bears a 25-14 set victory.
 
In the third set, the Bears opened on a 6-3 run capped off from a kill by Smits. Moravian answered with an 8-0 run and controlled a 11-6 lead after an ace from Ludlow. Moravian's Natalia Matos carried the momentum earning two aces over an 8-4 run from the Greyhounds, making the score 19-10. Moravian earned a set victory (25-15) after an ace from Mancini capped off a 6-5 Greyhounds run.
 
In the final set, Smits continued the offensive pressure for the Bears earning Ursinus' first three team points as they trailed 10-3. The Bears cut their deficit to just four after a 7-4 run made the score 14-10. Ursinus continued to battle back in the set, coming as close to two points but the Greyhounds earned the final three points of the match for a 3-1 victory.
 
The Bears will look to bounce back on Saturday as they host a tri-match with Washington College and Cabrini.