TOWSON, Md. – It looked like the Elon University volleyball team was on its way to forcing a fifth set against the Northeastern University Huskies in the quarterfinals of the Colonial Athletic Association Tournament on Thursday.

The 16th kill of the match from sophomore outside hitter Sydney Love had put the Phoenix ahead 24-23 in the fourth. Down 2-1 in sets, Elon was one point away from extending the match to a final set. After Love’s kill, the Huskies took a timeout. Northeastern proceeded to win the final three points out of the timeout to win the fourth and advance to the semifinals. 

"We were not playing at a high level today but still managed to give ourselves a chance to take it to a fifth set," head coach Mary Tendler said. "I'm proud of the players for grinding it out and putting themselves in that position."  

Northeastern cruised to wins in the first and third sets, but Elon won a tight battle in the second set and came from three points down late in the fourth to take a lead before set point. The Phoenix tied its season-high with 33 attack errors and hit just .092 for the match. 

Five of Love’s 16 kills came in the final set, including two that tied the score at 20-20 and 22-22 and the one that gave the Phoenix a set point at 24-23. Love also racked up a career-best eight digs. 

With 15 kills and 10 digs, senior outside hitter Leah Daniel posted her 11th career double-double in her final college match. Daniel finishes her Elon career with 1,619 kills, the most in program history. 

Senior setter Haylie Clark racked up 26 assists to lead the team. She ends her career on a streak of 80 consecutive matches posting double-digit assists. Senior libero Jordan Gower tallied a team-best 19 digs, while freshman middle blocker Lindsey Harris led the team with four blocks. 

With the loss, Elon’s season is over. The Phoenix finished with an overall record of 13-14. This was the last college match for Daniel, Clark, senior middle blocker Jenn Krzeminski, senior defensive specialist Alex VanWestrienen and senior middle blocker Claire Richey. 

"We will miss our five seniors, but at the same time, I am super excited for this program moving forward,” Tendler said.