LANGHORNE, Pa. – The Cairn University women's volleyball team bounced back from its first conference loss of the season with a 3-1 (22-25, 25-9, 25-21, 25-19) victory at home against Colonial States Athletic Conference (CSAC) adversary Keystone College on Saturday afternoon.
 
"After a tough conference loss earlier this week, today was a good rebound game for us against a talented conference opponent in Keystone." remarked Head Coach Whitney Seidel. "We wanted to focus on building an efficient, aggressive offense off of our serve-receive and defense, and I think we did an excellent job of hitting that goal."
 
Keystone (8-11, 3-2 CSAC) gained the early edge following a 25-22 triumph in set one to take a 1-0 match lead. Cairn (14-3, 4-1 CSAC) responded accordingly, collecting an emphatic 25-9 win in set two to knot the match up a one a-piece. Both teams battled through the third frame, as the Highlanders held a narrow 17-13 advantage at the midway point. Cairn put the set away following a three-point swing that included a pair of kills by fifth-year Allison Barnes (Macungie, PA / Salem Christian) to take a 2-1 match lead. Cairn did not allow the match to go to a fifth-and-final stanza, as it finished off the Giants with a 25-19 win in set four to earn the victory.
 
Cairn was led offensively by Barnes with a match-high 17 kills to the tune of a .519 hitting percentage to go along with a match-high five service aces. Barnes was followed closely by sophomore Caroline Conrad (Bangkok, Thailand / International Community School) with 13 kills at a .303 hitting percentage and matched senior Lizzy Fay (Langhorne, PA / Neshaminy) with a match-high 16 digs.

ICYMI:

Sophomore Caroline Conrad slammed down 13 kills to the tune of a .303 hitting percentage, including the Highlanders' final two kills of the contest as @CairnWVB bounced back with a four-set triumph at home against Keystone on Saturday!#PursueExcellence pic.twitter.com/wnfFJX3qUj

— Cairn Highlanders (@CairnAthletics) October 15, 2022

Fay also served up a career-high four aces in the contest. Senior Kali Burres-Cheeley (Wanaque, NJ / Hawthorne Christian) chipped in eight kills (with just one attacking error) to pair with 13 digs. Junior Olivia Zepp (Westminster, MD / Francis Scott Key) dished out a career-high 43 assists to round out the affair.
 
The Highlanders will be back on the floor on Wednesday, October 19, when they welcome defending conference champion Cedar Crest College to Langhorne for a crucial CSAC tilt inside the Mason Activity Center at 7 p.m.