HOBOKEN, N.J. – The Union College women's volleyball team closed out the opening weekend of the season on Saturday afternoon, dropping a 3-0 (26-24, 25-18, 25-22) match to Catholic University of America at Stevens Institute of Technology's Canavan Arena.
 
Sophomore Shannon McGrath led Union (1-2) with 16 kills and added 10 digs for her first double-double of the season. Senior Nikki Newcomer had a great outing with 13 kills on 28 attempts (.321 hitting), while sophomore Georgia Pool posed a match-high 17 assists. Senior Brooke Fleming (20 assists) and first-year Sydney Scanlon (17 assists) split the setting duties for the Garnet Chargers, and first-year Maddie McCarron led the squad with five blocks.
 
The opening set featured 11 ties and six lead changes, as neither team led by more than three points at any time. Union held an early 7-4 lead, but four straight Catholic points put the Cardinals ahead and the margin grew no larger than two in either direction after that. The Garnet Chargers led 22-20 after a kill by junior Farah Elgala, but three straight Catholic points swung the momentum. Union killed off one set point after a McGrath kill tied the score at 24, but two straight Catholic kills gave the Cardinals the opening set.
 
Union led for much of the middle set, starting out on a 3-0 run and never trailing until three straight Catholic points put the Garnet Chargers behind 17-15. After a McGrath kill, Catholic closed the frame on an 8-2 run to take a commanding 2-0 lead.
 
The third set also was a back-and-forth frame, with 14 ties and five lead changes. The last tie the match came at 21-all after a Catholic kill ended a 5-3 Union run that gave the Garnet Chargers their last lead of the afternoon. A kill, ace and Union attack error put the team on the brink of defeat, and after a service error denied Catholic on their first match-point chance, the match-high 18th kill of the day from Halie Murphy put the set and the match away for the Cardinals.
 
Catholic finished the day hitting .311 with 48 kills and only 11 errors, while Union put down 42 kills and hit .172 for the afternoon.
 
Union will return home on Wednesday for its 2023 home opener against Vermont State University Castleton beginning at 7 p.m. at Viniar Athletic Center.