Sophomore Isabel Donnelly's career-high-tying 15 kills were not quite enough as the Lake Forest College volleyball team was defeated 20-25, 25-18, 23-25, 25-16, 15-11 by visiting Carthage College Tuesday night.
Donnelly had just three attack error in 29 attempts for a .414 hitting percentage on the night. She also served up a pair of aces and added seven digs.
Senior Grace Larson matched Donnelly's 15 kills and her 20 digs tied for team-high honors with classmate Emily Witz. It was Larson's ninth double-double of the year.
Junior Hannah Hornacek also reached double figures with 11 kills, as did junior Olivia Rhodes and sophomore Olivia Drevs with 15 and 13 digs, respectively. Rhodes, the team's setter, also tallied 43 assists in the contest.
Rhodes had 10 assists in the opening set, which the Foresters trailed 10-2 before coming back and tying the score at 14. Both teams had 19 points before two kills by Donnelly separated by back-to-back aces by Drevs gave the home team a 23-19 advantage. After the Lady Reds won the serve, Donnelly pounded out her fourth kill of the set and Larson her fifth to finish it off.
Lake Forest led 9-8 in set two before Carthage won seven of eight points to pull ahead for good. The margin reached as many as six points on several occasions before the visitors took the set by seven.
Donnelly had six kills in the third set, including three during an 8-1 run at the beginning. The Lady Reds closed to within a point at 11-10 and again five more times in the set, the last at 24-23. A kill by Donnelly finished it off and gave the Foresters a two-sets-to-one advantage in the match.
A 9-2 run early in set four put the Lady Reds ahead 14-8. Their lead eventually reached 10 points at 22-12 and they won the set by nine.
The decisive fifth set was tied six times early on, the last at 7-7. Lake Forest was unable to win consecutive points the rest of the way and Carthage gradually pulled away, taking the set 15-11 and the match three sets to two.
The Foresters fell to 8-11 on the year with seven of the losses coming in five-set decisions. Carthage improved to 12-7.
Lake Forest will resume Midwest Conference play with a pair of home matches this weekend. The Foresters will host Grinnell College at 7:00 Friday night and Cornell College the following afternoon at 1:00.
