KIRTLAND, Ohio – Lakeland Community College volleyball showed enough fight in the second set to earn a split of the first two with Columbus State Community College but Columbus came back and took the final two sets to earn the 3-1 victory over the Lakers by the score of 25-18, 23-25, 25-18 and 25-14.
With the loss, the Lakers fall to 6-9 overall and 4-3 in the Ohio Community College Athletic Conference. Lakeland has lost its last two conference games.
Krista Curtis led Lakeland in kills with 18 and added 10 blocks. Iesha Niciu added 14 kills and Cary Morin added 12. Caitlin Cipriano led the Lakers with 25 assists and Brittney O'Hara finished with 35 digs.
Lakeland started the match really well as it jumped out to an 8-3 lead after a block from Curtis. The Lakers were clinging to a 13-10 lead after an ace from Cipriano but Columbus started to grab momentum and took the first set 25-18.
The second set started out much more even as Columbus and Lakeland split the first 22 points. Morin did earn back-to-back kills to give the Lakers a 22-17 lead. Columbus tried creeping back into the set but Morin was able to earn a block to close out the set 25-23.
There were moments that Lakeland appeared to grab some momentum in the third set as Niciu earned a block for an 11-7 lead. Columbus took control of the set from there and grabbed a 2-1 lead with a 25-18 victory in the third.
Lakeland actually scored the first three points of the fourth set after an ace from Cipriano but Columbus again took control late and ended the match with a 25-14 victory in the fourth.
Lakeland will hit the road on Friday, Sept. 22 to face Hocking College at 6 p.m. for a conference match.
For more information about Lakeland athletics, visit www.athletics.lakelandcc.edu.
About Lakeland Community College
Founded in 1967, Lakeland Community College was the first college in Ohio created by a vote of the people. True to our mission, Lakeland provides quality learning opportunities to meet the social and economic needs of the community.
Offering day, evening, weekend and online classes, the college serves more than 10,800 credit and 2,800 noncredit students (2016). For more information about the College, visit www.lakelandcc.edu.
