NEWARK, N.J. - The Purchase College women's volleyball team split a pair of contests Saturday afternoon, as the Panthers bested Lehman College and fell to Rutgers University-Newark.

Game One: Purchase, 3, Lehman 0 (25-20, 25-19, 25-14)

In the opening game of the day, the squad hit .114 with 26 kills to cruise to a straight-sets win over Lehman.

In the victory, the Blue and Orange used big runs early to create space between themselves and the Lightning, as the match was never in doubt.

Individually, Marcella Pena (FR/Bronx, NY) powered the effort with a career-high 10 kills and three aces, while Ava Landreth (FR/Brooklyn, NY) added six kills and a block.

Natalia Leite (FR/Thornwood, NY) recorded a career-best 25 assists. Maya Brown tallied 15 digs in the victory.

Game Two: Rutgers-Newark 3, Purchase 1 (25-17, 20-25, 25-21, 25-11)

In the final match for the Panthers, they battled valiantly before ultimately succumbing to the hosts. 

The first three sets played out quite closely as the two sides battled back and forth throughout. While Purchase prevailed in set two, sets one and three saw Newark edge in front late to claim the frames.

By the time the fourth frame came around, Rutgers was rocking and rolling, which allowed the hosts to cruise to the set and match win.

Overall, the Blue and Orange finished with 27 kills on .045 hitting in the effort. Pena finished as the team's top hitter once again, recording seven kills.

Lilith Bastek-Ochoa (JR/Sag Harbor, NY) added six kills, two aces and 12 digs, while Leite paced the squad in assists (18) and digs (17).

Up next for the Panthers is a return to Skyline Conference action, as the team travels to Old Westbury on September 26th at 6 p.m.