PURCHASE, NY – Purchase College was able to extend Thursday night's volleyball match into a fourth set, but Albertus Magnus regained control to defeat the Panthers, 3-1 (26-24, 25-17, 15-25, 25-16).
The non-conference loss drops Purchase to 3-6 on the season, while the visiting Falcons advance to 6-7 overall.

Freshman standout Pamella Gonzalez (Bronx, NY) led the Panthers with her first collegiate double-double, collecting 14 kills and 16 digs. She recorded a season-best .231 hitting percentage and led all scorers with 15 total points. Senior co-captain Joetta Francis (New York, NY) and freshman middle Samantha Fasce (Yorktown, NY) were next in line to lead the Panther offense with eight and seven kills, respectively.

Sophomore setter Skyla Schoppmeyer (Oakdale, NY) backed a match-high 26 assists, while freshman libero Esmee Johns (Saratoga Springs, NY) led the defense with 24 digs and 34 receptions.  Sophomore outside hitter Gia Gwin (Yonkers, NY) chipped in with a team-best three aces on 20 trips to the service line. Senior co-captain Isis Gonzalez (Brooklyn, NY), Johns and Schoppmeyer capped the Panther highlights with a combined six service aces.

In the opening set, Purchase jumped out to a 10-6 lead thanks to a combined scoring effort from Pamella Gonzalez, Fasce and Johns. Albertus rallied to even the score at 11-all and eventually took the lead following three Purchase errors. The Falcons held the lead and tacked on four unanswered points (24-20) with Diana Kalman at the service line. Purchase answered back with its own 4-0 rally, led by Francis' back-to-back kills. Despite their efforts, the Panthers came out on the losing end of a 26-24 set after committing a reception error off the serve of Maria Vazquez.

Albertus broke the scoring ice in the second set and continued to ignite with a team hitting percentage of .250. Purchase attempted a late comeback with four unanswered points (22-15) but Albertus took back the run and closed the set ahead, 25-17.

Down by two sets, Purchase regrouped and came out firing away in the third set. A 9-3 Panther lead forced an Albertus timeout. Despite the stoppage, the Panthers continued to heat up as Purchase stretched its advantage to 14-4 on a Pamella Gonzalez kill. With Schoppmeyer at the service line, Purchase tacked on another four points to sit at a comfortable 19-5 lead.

A short-lived Falcon run brought the visitors within nine points of Purchase's lead (23-14). After a timeout called by head coach Albana Krasniqi Munrett, the Panthers scored on an Albertus attacking error. With the score at set-point, the Falcons committed a rotation error which afforded Purchase the 25-15 victory.

Albertus clawed back in the fourth set, opening the stanza with a 4-0 run. Three Falcon aces and five Panther errors pushed the visitors to run their advantage to 15-8, forcing the Purchase bench to call a timeout. Isis and Pamella Gonzalez teamed up to snap the Albertus scoring streak with a kill and an ace, respectively, but despite their efforts Albertus went on to secure the match with a 25-16 set win.  

Purchase looks to bounce back from Thursday's upset when the team returns to action on Sept. 30. The Panthers are set to play host to Mitchell College for a non-conference match starting at 7 p.m.

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