The Bard women's volleyball team fell to the Penn State Altoona Nittany Lions and the Wilkes Colonels on Saturday at Wilkes.

Against Penn State Altoona, Becca Wintjen led the way offensively with 12 kills on a .290 hitting percentage, adding six digs and an assist. Nyla Lawrence was efficient at the net with eight kills on just 20 swings (.300), while also contributing a block and an assist. Annika Flittie had a solid all-around game, finishing with three kills, six digs, and a block. Xenia Vassou chipped in with two kills, two digs, and a block.

Setter Fernanda Julian continued to pace the offense with 22 assists and chipped in defensively with seven digs. She also added an ace. Ella Small anchored the back row with a team-high 11 digs and picked up an ace. Paola De La Cruz added contributions on serve and defense, with an ace and six digs.

The Nittany Lions and the Raptors were even through the first 16 points of the match. Penn State Altoona had a slight advantage after that, winning 11 of the next 19 points. At 19-17 with Bard down by two, the Nittany Lions went on a 4-0 run to extend the lead. The Raptors won the next three points to make it 23-20, but the final two points went to Penn State Altoona. Wintjen had eight kills in the set, and Small dug up seven attacks, but it wasn't enough.

Bard responded early in the second set and was within one at 4-5, but the Nittany Lions took the next seven points. That lead sustained them for the set, as a 3-0 Bard run to make it 11-16 was the longest run from the Raptors in the second. Bard led Penn State Altoona in service aces 2-1 in the frame.

In the third set, the Raptors won four of the first six points on the back of two kills from Lawrence. A third early kill made it 5-4 in favor of Bard. A 4-0 run from Penn State Altoona at 8-8 gave the Nittany Lions an edge. The Raptors had a late rally as a 4-2 mini-run at 21-14 kept hopes of a comeback alive. However, the Nittany Lions' 15 kills and seven blocks were too much to handle.

Versus Wilkes, Flittie nearly tied her season-high in kills of 17, as she had 16 putaways to lead Bard. She added 11 digs for her second double-double of 2025 and fifth of her career. Three of the five have been at a Wilkes Tri-Match. Wintjen also had a double-double with 10 kills and 14 digs, her third of the season and eleventh of her career. Both attackers added two aces and an assist.

Lawrence had eight kills, two blocks, two digs, and an assist. Julian reached the 30-assist mark for the first time, dishing out a career-high 34 assists. It also marks her fifth match in a row with 20+ assists. Julian also recorded eight digs. Leading the team in digs was Small, putting up 15 along with two assists.

Set one was one-way traffic for Wilkes, as a 7-1 start and strong serving led to a tall hill to climb. Bard found some footing towards the end of the set, allowing it to make positive strides in the second set. With Wilkes leading 7-3 in the second, the Raptors won eight of the next 11 points to get a lead at 11-10. The Colonels had another big run, going on an 11-4 stretch despite two kills from Flittie and Wintjen. At 21-15, Wilkes needed four points to close it out, but the Raptors surged from behind in an impressive 10-2 close to the set, evening up the match score 1-1. Bard hit 13 kills to just three errors in the set for a .313 hitting percentage.

The Raptors had an early lead, 4-3, in the third set, but it was short-lived. The Colonels won the next seven points. At 9-18, Bard chipped away, earning five of the next eight points. Two were kills from Flittie, and De La Cruz had an ace to close the run. However, Wilkes took four of the final five points in the set to bring a 2-1 lead into the fourth set. 
Bard had one more kill in the fourth frame, 14-13, showing they could bring just as much power as their opponent. The Raptors had an 8-4 surge to begin the set, including five straight at 3-4. A 10-1 Wilkes run was followed by a 6-2 Bard run that brought the Raptors to within one at 15-16. Lawrence personally kept the set close, with three kills during the final stages. The Colonels ended on a 3-0 run to take the match.

Liberty League play for Bard begins on Wednesday at 7 p.m., when it hosts Vassar for its Dig Pink match.