WALTHAM, Mass. – The Brandeis University volleyball team handed visiting Plymouth State University its first loss of the season tonight with a three-set win. The Judges bested one of the last six unbeaten teams in Division III, 25-19, 25-23, 25-16.

TEAM RECORDS

• Brandeis, 9-5.
• Plymouth State, 11-1.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Judges and Panthers had three ties and three lead changes in the first set. Brandeis looked to pull away with a 4-0 run that expanded an 9-7 lead to 13-7 after a block by senior Alina Nowakowski (Mansfield, Mass/Mansfield) and first-year Madison Haft-Abromovitch (Stratford).
• PSU answered with a 10-3 run that gave the visitors a 17-16 lead. Brandeis turned the tables, ending the set with a 9-2 run of their own. First-years Isabella Irizarry (Guaynabo, P.R./) and Alexa Ho (Queens, N.Y./Francis Lewis) served four-point runs down the stretch to clinch the 1-0 lead.
• Though the second set had just one tie or lead change, but it was a big one. With the Judges trailing 18-12, they ran off an 11-point string on the serve of sophomore Julia Liang (Sugar Land, Texas/Clements) that got the Judges close. The Panthers clawed to within 24-23, surviving three set points before Brandeis pulled it out.
• In the last set, Brandeis never trailed and outhit PSU, .265 to .057, en route to their biggest win.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Verstovsek led the Judges with 17 kills and just three errors in 33 attacks for a .424 hitting percentage. She also had 10 digs for her eighth double-double of the season.
• The 17 kills marked the third-highest total for Verstovsek in her career for a three-set match.
• Junior Anna Ertischek (Montgomery, Texas/Lake Creek) added nine kills of her own.
• Irrizarry led Brandeis with 14 digs, while Liang and Samantha Lin (Menlo Park, Calif./Menlo-Atherton) combined for 26 assists.

UP NEXT

• The Judges take on the always challenging UAA next weekend at NYU with matches against the home team and six others searching for us.