WORCESTER, Mass. – Freshman outside hitter Emma Sorensen recorded a career-high 20 kills as the Holy Cross volleyball team was bettered by Patriot League opponent Lehigh 3-2 on Saturday evening in Blaney Gymnasium.

The loss was the 12th overall for the Crusaders and their fourth in league play while the Mountain Hawks moved to 7-6 and 1-3 PL with the victory.

Sorensen had a game-high 20 kills with 11 digs, hitting .333 from the outside with a pair of aces and a block for her second consecutive double-double effort. She was joined by teammate, junior outside hitter Taliah Lee who posted 11 kills on .280 hitting.

SET SCORES:
Mountain Hawks 3, Crusaders 2 (22-25, 25-17, 11-25, 25-17, 12-15)

HOW IT HAPPENED: 

• A Lee kill gave the Crusader their first lead at 2-1 in the opening set. Lehigh leveled the score 8-8 and Holy Cross put home five in a row getting a pair of Sorensen kills for the 13-8 margin. Freshman middle blocker Kyla Harris converted a set from the middle to expand the edge to 15-9. An 8-2 Lehigh burst tied the score 17 all. Freshman setter/right side KK Green powered the ball from the right pin to make it 20-19 Holy Cross. Lehigh outscored the Crusaders six to two to win the set.
• Two consecutive aces by sophomore setter Tuana Ozarpaci put the Crusaders in the lead at 6-3. Ozarpaci then set up Harris for the 10-4 Holy Cross advantage. Harris and Sorensen teamed up for a block increasing the score to 16-9. Lehigh came within five at 22-17, but the Crusaders got three kills, one from Lee, Sorensen and Harris to end the set at 25-17 and tie the match.
• In the third set, Lehigh had a 10-4 edge which led to Holy Cross taking their first timeout. Coming out of the timeout they tacked on five more points for the 15-4 margin. They eventually won the set to take a 2-1 match lead.
• The Crusaders responded from an early deficit in the fourth set notching five straight markers with kills from Lee and junior outside hitter Lily Eigner and a Sorensen ace to turn a 4-2 deficit to a 7-4 advantage. Holy Cross multiplied their lead late to six, 20-14 as senior setter Katie Russell set up Sorensen. Sorensen posted four of the final five points for the Crusaders forcing a fifth set.
• In the fifth set, Holy Cross tied the score 3-3 following a perfectly placed freshman setter Emilia Powderly ace. Lehigh led 8-5 as the teams' swapped sides. Another Sorensen kill and a Lehigh attack error tied the match 10-10. Sorensen's 20th kill put them down one, 13-12 before the Mountain Hawks won the contest.

INSIDE THE BOX:

• Sorensen has double-digit kills and digs six times in 2025.
• Holy Cross had the better service game as they doubled up Lehigh eight-to-four in aces.
• Freshman defensive specialist Savannah Baron had a career-high matching 12 digs for the second straight game.
• The Crusaders played their seventh five-set match this season.

UP NEXT:

• Holy Cross competes in their third straight home game on Tuesday, Sept. 30 against non-conference opponent Le Moyne (1-10) in Blaney Gymnasium at 6:30 p.m.

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