LATROBE, Pa. -- Despite taking the opening set of the match, the Washington & Jefferson College volleyball team dropped a 3-1 decision to host Saint Vincent College in a Presidents' Athletic Conference match Tuesday evening. 

W&J earned a 25-19 victory in the opening set but then dropped the next three sets by respective scores of 25-14, 25-21 and 26-24. 

The Presidents used six consecutive points to break a 10-10 tie in the opening set. Junior middle hitter Lizzie Carmichael (Wyoming, Ohio/Wyoming) tallied three kills during the spurt. W&J maintained at least a three-point lead the rest of the way. A kill by freshman outside hitter Faith Fetsko (South Park, Pa./South Park) swelled the lead to six points (22-16). An attack error by Saint Vincent gave W&J the 25-19 set one victory. 

The second set was back and forth at the outset as Saint Vincent held a narrow 9-8 edge over W&J. However, the host Bearcats ripped off seven-straight points to gain control of the set. Saint Vincent eventually finished off a 25-14 set two victory that evened the match at a set apiece. 

W&J had its chances in the third set, as the Red and Black trailed by just two (18-16) in the latter stages. Saint Vincent pulled away down the stretch to record the 25-21 victory and take a 2-1 set advantage into the fourth. 

The Presidents seemed poised to force a decisive fifth set after three consecutive points gave the Red and Black an 18-15 lead in the fourth. A pair of kills by Fetsko sandwiched a successful attack by sophomore setter Adrianna Sacramento (Pittsburgh, Pa./Woodland Hills). The lead grew to as many as four points when senior outside hitter Claire Sauerland (Hollidaysburg, Pa./Hollidaysburg) registered a kill and forced Saint Vincent to use a timeout trailing 21-17. Saint Vincent responded with four of the next five points to trim the W&J lead to just one point. After a Carmichael killed made it 23-21 W&J, the Bearcats tallied five of the final six points to steal the set from W&J.

Carmichael produced the most efficient attacking effort for W&J. The PAC's leader in hitting percentage tallied 11 hits and committed just one error on the evening.

Fetsko finished with 14 kills and 25 digs in the setback. Sacramento distributed a match-best 39 assists to go along with seven kills and 16 digs. 

Defensively, freshman libero Piper McFarland (West Mifflin, Pa./Cornerstone Preparatory Academy) finished with a match-high 31 digs. 

W&J travels to Geneva College on Thursday, Oct. 13. Start time is scheduled for 7 p.m. in Beaver Falls.