PHILADELPHIA- The La Salle volleyball team opened up Atlantic 10 play with a 3-1 (25-23, 21-25, 12-25, 19-25) loss to Saint Louis on Friday night at Tom Gola Arena. Sophomore Bryanna Davis led the way with 17 kills on the evening.
 
The Explorers (6-11, 0-1 A-10) were able to come out firing and grab a competitive set one, 25-23. The set win was the first in program history against the Billikens. La Salle held the lead for most of the match, and despite the visitors from Saint Louis (12-5, 1-0 A-10) fending off four set points to cut the lead to just one at 24-23, a Davis kill sealed the set win for the Explorers. Davis led the way with six kills as the team hit .310 in the frame. Sophomore Hannah McGary added three service aces in the frame to aid the attack.
 
"As a team, we really stepped up and played extremely competitively against a perennial powerhouse in the Atlantic 10," said head coach Caitlin Rimgaila. "From the first point, we played aggressively and were well poised. As the match went on we fatigued and committed for too many unforced errors, especially at the service line."
 
Set two was tight throughout as well, but Saint Louis was able to head up towards the end of the set to take the frame, 25-21 and head into the break even at 1-1. Freshman Madison Kuch had five kills on just eight swings for a .500 hitting percentage in the frame.
 
"Our efficiency from the outside position continues to improve match to match, week to week," added Rimgaila. "Bryanna and Madi have found new ways to score, and Taylor Hite continues to set the ball at a tempo that proves effective against solid defenders."
 
The Billikens kept their momentum moving out of the break as they jumped out to an early lead and cruised to a 25-12 set three win. Saint Louis hit .400 in the frame.
 
The Explorers were able come back and fight to a much tighter fourth set, but again Saint Louis got hot when it mattered to close out the set 25-19, and the match 3-1. La Salle was able to stymie the visitors attack, limiting them to just .103 hitting in the frame. Davis added four kills while McGary and Kuch added three of their own.
 
Kuch finished with 12 kills on the evening while hitting .304 on the night. This was her third match this season in double-digit kills. Freshman Jensen Sharrits added 15 digs while classmate Taylor Hite finished with 37 assists and eight digs on the evening.
 
"Jensen Sharrits has made some outstanding digs and is playing at the level of the other top liberos in the conference," stated Rimgaila. "Her ability to read attackers, and make major digs on hard hits in system swings is allowing us to have many more opportunities to score in transition."
 
La Salle returns to action tomorrow night as they face Dayton with first serve scheduled for 7 p.m.