WALTHAM, Mass.—Junior Lara Verstovsek (Bellaire, Texas/Episcopal) set a new career high with 25 kills and Brandeis University nearly rallied from a two-set deficit before falling to visiting Smith College 3-2 (25-21, 25-22, 17-25, 15-25, 15-10) on Thursday night inside Red Auerbach Arena. 

TEAM RECORDS

•    Brandeis: 8-13
•    Smith: 16-10

HOW IT HAPPENED

•    The opening set featured six ties and three lead changes before Smith turned a 12-11 deficit into a 22-14 lead with an 11-2 run.
•    The Pioneers built a 16-4 advantage in game two, but the Judges got five kills from sophomore Anna Ertischek (Montgomery, Texas/Lake Creek) and two more from Verstovsek as part of an extended 17-5 spurt to pull even at 21. The teams traded attack errors before Smith scored the final three points for a two-set lead. 
•    Brandeis hit .290 with 12 kills and took advantage of 10 errors by the visitors in the third set to extend the match. 
•    Smith led 12-11 in the third before junior Arianna Jackson (Lewis Center, Ohio/Oletangy Orange) and senior Rita Lai (Sugar Land, Texas/Clements) recorded back-to-back kills and combined for a block to spark a 10-2 run that gave the hosts a commanding 21-14 edge. 
•    The Judges were even better in the fourth set totaling 18 kills while hitting at a .412 clip in a 25-15 win. 
•    Verstovsek had eight kills and Ertischeck added six kills as Brandeis twice led by as many as 11 to force a decisive fifth set. 
•    Junior Tatiana Wainer (North Miami Beach, Fla./Schech Hillel Community) contributed two blocks and a kill by Ertischek made it 6-6 before the Pioneers scored six of the next eight points to build a 12-8 advantage. 
•    The hosts got as close as three on Verstovsek's final kill of the night before the Pioneers closed out the victory with three of the final four points. 

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE 

•    Ertischek had 18 kills and hit .309, while Wainer added six kills and five blocks for the Judges. 
•    Sophomore Megan Margolis (Lake Forest, Ill./Lake Forest) led all players with 26 assists and senior Ines Grom-Mansencal (Cincinnati, Ohio/Wyoming) chipped in with 22 assists. 
•    Senior Ella Pereira (Redondo Beach, Calif./Rolling Hills Prep) finished with a match-high 19 digs, while Verstovsek contributed 13 digs. 
•    Jackson tied for match-high honors with five total blocks.
•    The Judges hit .218 in the match and set a new season high with 61 kills. 

UP NEXT 

•    Brandeis returns to action on Friday when it hosts Bowdoin at 6 p.m.