GOSHEN, Ind. — Hallie Vanitvelt and Sydney Cruz led the Goshen College women's volleyball team with 8 kills apiece Tuesday night in a 25-18, 25-22, 25-20 loss to Mount Vernon Nazarene University in Gunden Gymnasium.

Elizabeth Breckbill added a match-high four blocks for the Maple Leafs (8-22, 2-12), who returned to their home floor for the first time in 20 days.

Goshen used kills from Hallie Vanitvelt and Sydney Cruz to level the score at 9 early in the first set, after a five-point run for the Maple Leafs that included a pair of aces from sophomore Tessa Clark. After MVNU re-took the lead, another Cruz kill combined with a Jennifer Ritchie ace for another 3-point Maple Leaf spurt.

The Leafs' longest run of the night came late in the second set, a six-point effort that included two Vanitvelt winners plus a block from Vanitvelt and Taylor Eash that closed the score to 25-22.

Cruz chipped in two kills and another block in a four-point span early in the third set, with the stuff doubling as the first half of back-to-back MVNU attacking errors to put Goshen in front. The teams later traded sets of two straight kills, and Goshen later reeled off three straight points on a Breckbill block and a Ritchie kill before a Haylee Pennington winner got GC its final point of the evening.

The Cougars (11-17, 2-13) hit better than .300 in both of the first two sets; Kristen Osborn and Nicole Winkler each recorded 11 kills.

Notable Numbers:

18: Clark led all players with a career-high 3 aces for GC. The Goshen native also served a match-high 18 times, including the two runs of 5 points or longer.

11/10: MVNU outside hitter Nicole Winkler posted a double-double with 11 kills and 10 digs.

3: Tuesday was the first match of a three-match homestand for the Maple Leafs, who also host Saint Francis at 7 p.m. Wednesday and Taylor at 7 p.m. Friday. The USF match is Professors Night, when members of the Maple Leaf team will invite faculty and staff who have played significant roles in their college careers, and the Taylor match will be Senior Night for GC's four seniors.

Up Next: Wednesday, Oct. 24 — Saint Francis at Goshen, 7 p.m.