UTICA, NY- The Utica College volleyball team put forth a strong effort in its Empire 8 Conference opener on Saturday afternoon, however the Pioneers fell to Ithaca College and Houghton College, 3-0 and 3-1, respectively. 
 
Utica 0, Ithaca 3- Game One Final
Ithaca College picked up its tenth straight victory and improved to 3-0 in the conference as it won in straight sets.  The Bombers took the first set 25-16, before Utica battled back in the second set.  The Pioneers jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the second stanza, before Ithaca was finally able to get on the board. 
 
After a lot of back-and-forth play, the Bombers were able to take a 19-13 lead in the set, however the Pioneers battled back to trail by just one point, 24-23, before Ithaca was able to spike the ball for the deciding point. 
 
The Pioneers fought hard in the third set as well, but the league-leading Bombers proved to be too much as they took the set 25-21 to improve to 14-1 on the season.
 
Junior Brandi Blaszak (Marcy, NY/Whitesboro) and freshman Hannah Voss (St. Louis, MO/Oakville) each recorded seven kills, while senior Laura Homer-Gunther (Sauquoit, NY/Sauquoit) was right on their tails with six kills of her own.  Senior Lora Allen (Dolgeville, NY/Dolgeville) totaled 23 assists, while classmate Alexis Lyon (Prospect, NY/Holland Patent) led UC with 18 digs.  Voss was the only other Pioneer to register double-digits in digs as she finished with 11. 

Utica 1, Houghton 3- Game Two Final
Senior Lora Allen (Dolgeville, NY/Dolgeville) collected a career-high 42 assists as the Pioneers fell 3-1 to visiting Houghton College.  Allen also added 11 digs and two kills.  Freshman Hannah Voss (St. Louis, MO/Oakville) led Utica with 13 kills and added 12 digs, while Nicole Herringshaw (Syracuse, NY/Cicero-North Syracuse) and Laura Homer-Gunther (Sauquoit, NY/Sauquoit) each had 11 kills.  Alexis Lyon (Prospect, NY/Holland Patent)s totaled 21 digs to lead the defensive side. 
 
UC (2-14, 0-2 Empire 8) returns to action Tuesday as it hosts Hartwick College.  The Empire 8 Conference contest is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m.