BLOOMFIELD, N.J.- Junior Taryn Auyong (Honolulu, Hawaii) tallied a season-high 25 kills but the Caldwell University volleyball came up short to the Bloomfield College Bears in both teams' first Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference match of the season. The Cougars fall to 7-4 and 0-1 in the CACC, while the Bears improve to 4-6 and 1-0 in conference play.

Caldwell got off to a strong start in the match as they won the opening set 25-21. In the second set, the Bears led most of the way as they built a 23-18 late in the set. The Cougars rallied to pull even at 24 but the Bears netted the final two points to win set two 26-24.

In the third set, Caldwell jumped out to a 16-13 lead but Bloomfield ripped off the next three points to tie the score at 16. The teams' traded points as the Bears pulled ahead 23-20 but the Cougars rallied to take a 24-23 lead. Bloomfield rallied to pull even at 25 and netted the final two points to take the set 27-25. In the fourth set, Bloomfield took a 10-1 lead but the Cougars battled back, closing the gap to 22-20. The Bears posted three of the next five points to take the match 25-22.

Auyong chipped in 15 digs along with her 25 kills, while junior Katrina Janssen (Seville, Australia) recorded 18 kills and three solo blocks.  Sophomore Jordan Hoffman (Colorado Springs, Colo.) posted 27 assists, five aces and 17 dig, while junior Gabrielle Bennett (San Antonio, Texas) totaled 16 assists. Junior Jessica Mitchell (Plainfield, Ill.) netted a team-best 21 digs, while sophomore Melanie Krpec (Katy, Texas) finished with four kills and 15 digs.  

The Cougars host Philadelphia University to campus on Saturday, September 17 for a CACC match at 4:30 pm