THE BASICS:

RESULT: Fordham 3, Hartford 2 (25-20, 21-25, 22-25, 25-17, 15-11)
LOCATION: New York, N.Y.
RECORDS: Hartford (3-8), Fordham (7-5)

THE LEAD:
Freshman Jenna Bridges delivered 10 kills and six of her team's season-high 15 blocks, but Fordham rallied past the University of Hartford volleyball team to upend the Hawks, 3-2, on Friday night. The match was the opening contest in the Lion Invitational, hosted by Columbia.
 
Paulina Modestow added 11 kills for the Hawks, while Rachel Moll led the squad with seven blocks in the match. Alyse Wenzel and Olivia Rougeau also had strong games on the block, finishing with four apiece. Modestow led the Hawks with 10 digs, while Astrid Mangual doled out 34 assists.
 
Olivia Fairchild led the way for the Rams, posting 21 kills, while Kaitlin Morley (12) and Natalie Martinez (10) also found their way into double figures. Maddy Walsh posted 57 assists for the Rams, who also received 18 digs from Morgan Williams.

SET-BY-SET
• The Rams came out blazing in the first, delivering the first six points in the match, and held on for the remainder. Hartford was able to cut the deficit to two on several occasions, including an 18-16 score after a kill by Modestow. But Fordham regained the momentum, earning a 25-20 victory in the first.
• In the second, the teams went back-and-forth out of the gate to a 5-5 score. Hartford then went on a rally for four-straight points, including a Megan Scherer ace, a Bridges block and a Bridges kill, to make it 9-5. The Rams battled back to tie it at 10-all, and from there it was a tight affair to a 20-19 Hartford lead. The Hawks then got a kill from Modestow and three straight blocks on the way to a 25-21 win.
• The third saw the Hawks take a 3-2 lead and never relinquish it in a 25-22 victory. Back-to-back aces by Paola Llerandi set the tone for a 5-2 advantage early on, and the Hawks pushed the lead to 10-5 after a Modestow kill. From there, the lead bounced between three and five until Fordham was able to cut it to two at 19-17. But a Bridges kill stemmed the tide, and the freshman finished off the set with another spike for a 2-1 Hawks lead.
• Fordham got out to another strong start in the fourth, opening an early 6-1 lead. The Rams built the advantage up to 20-12, forcing a Hawks timeout, and went on to a 25-17 victory to force a fifth and decisive set.
• In the fifth, the Rams came out rolling, developing an 8-2 lead into the break. The Hawks cut it to 8-5, but Fordham rebounded to take a 12-7 edge. Hartford then went on a rally, delivering four-straight points, two on the block, to cut it to just 12-11, but Fordham responded with the final three points to take the match, 15-11.

UP NEXT:
The Hawks will close out the Columbia Tournament with Saturday matches against Columbia (10:30 a.m.) and Providence (4:30 p.m.) Live stats and video will be available for both matches with links found on HartfordHawks.com.