ABINGTON, Pa. – The Cairn University women's volleyball team lost in its season-opener at Penn State Abington by a score of 3-0 (25-21, 25-23, 25-14) on Wednesday evening.
 
The Highlanders (0-1) got off to a red-hot start in the first set, grabbing the first four points and took a 5-1 lead before Penn State Abington (1-0) burned a timeout. The Lions responded by scoring ten of the next 12 points, taking an 11-7 lead. The Highlanders off six consecutive points of their own to take a 13-11 lead, however, the Lions reclaimed the lead with a 6-2 run and claimed the first set. The second stanza went down to the wire, as both teams were deadlocked at 23-23 in the closing moments of the set, but the Lions collected the last two points and were able to comfortably win the third set to put away the Highlanders.
 
Cairn was led by junior Kali Burres (Wanaque, NJ / Hawthorne Christian), who slammed down a team-and career high 10 kills to go along with 10 points and eight digs. Senior Allison Barnes (Macungie, PA / Salem Christian) followed with eight kills and a team-high .389 hitting percentage. Senior Caroline Bennett (Little Silver, NJ / Red Bank Regional) also added six kills, tying a career-high. Sophomore Olivia Zepp (Westminster, MD / Francis Scott Key) dished out a team-high 19 assists in her collegiate debut and junior Paige Kemper (Lancaster, PA / Garden Spot) scooped up a team-high 10 digs in her first career contest.
 
Cairn will be back on the court on Friday, September 3 when it embarks on its home-opener against Delaware Valley University. Match time is scheduled for 7 p.m.