FORT WAYNE, Ind. — A pair of hot set starts proved not to be enough Wednesday night as Goshen College dropped a four-set women's volleyball decision to 19th-ranked Saint Francis at the Hutzell Athletic Center.

USF (15-2, 5-0), which achieved sole possession of the conference lead during the match when Taylor knocked off Bethel, took the first set 25-21 after claiming 13 of 17 points in the midst of it.

Goshen (7-8, 1-2) responded by winning six of the first seven points in the second stanza en route to a 12-4 lead; the Cougars got four consecutive kills, including three from Cassidy Rammel, as part of a six-point run to get back within 15-13. The Maple Leafs would lead by five as late as 23-18 before USF took six consecutive points again for a two-sets-to-none lead.

Again, the Maple Leafs bounced back from a loss by taking an early lead in the third set, pulling ahead 10-3 behind two Elizabeth Breckbill kills. Goshen led by as many as 10 points in that set on the way to a 25-21 win to stay alive.

The fourth set saw seven ties out of the first 12 opportunities before two Megan Diagostino winners pushed the hosts out to a 16-12 lead. Goshen got kills from Taylor Eash, Haylee Pennington and Jennifer Ritchie to close within 19-18, but the Leafs advanced no further as the Cougars ended the match with five kills in six points.

Rammel and Diagostino led all players with 16 and 12 kills, respectively, for USF while Kendra Seifring added 10. Setter Maria Pelak chipped in a match-high 49 aces. GC got 10 winners from Ritchie and 9 from Hallie Vanitvelt while Eash and Seifring led all players with 4 blocks apiece.

Notable Numbers:

11: Saint Francis won its 11th straight match and set a new program record for the fastest 15th win in a season.

.093: The Maple Leafs hit less than .100 in the three sets they lost despite posting 29 winners in those sets.

5/14: Over the next 15 days, Goshen plays five of its six matches in Gunden Gymnasium, leaving its home court once.

Up Next: Friday, 7 p.m. – Marian at Goshen.