Loudonville, NY – The NJIT women's volleyball team opened up its weekend at the Siena Invitational on Friday afternoon, falling in three sets to Syracuse. The Highlanders held a late lead in set one but were unable to hold on, while the Orange controlled the final two sets to win the match, 26-24, 25-19, 25-20.

In set one, Syracuse built a six point advantage, 14-8, when NJIT began to rally. A kill from Ines Varela brought the Highlanders back within one, 16-15, and after the teams traded points, an Ilayda Dincer kill knotted things up at 18-18. The Highlanders would eventually build a 24-21 edge, however the Orange rattled off five straight points to take the set one victory.

Set two was close again, as neither side were able to build a lead larger than three points through the majority of the frame. After a kill from Aries Fontaine pulled the Highlanders within one, 18-17, Syracuse scored three straight to help propel them to a set two win. Set three was a similar story, with the Highlanders once again hanging tough throughout the stanza. Cece Marino picked up an ace late in the set to inch NJIT closer, 21-20, however Syracuse would grab the next four points to seal the victory.

Dincer finished with a team-high 11 kills, while Varela was NJIT's most efficient attacker with five kills on a .308 hitting percentage. Doga Emil surpassed 20 digs for the second time in three matches, finishing the day with 21. It marked the second time in her career that she has posted at least 20 digs in a three-set match.

NJIT returns to the court on Saturday for a pair of matches. The Highlanders will face Idaho at 11 a.m. followed by a showdown with Siena at 6 p.m.