Columbia, S.C - CIU volleyball recorded yet another milestone on Saturday as the Rams hosted the first-ever NAIA postseason competition in the school's history. However, despite a hard-fought battle, CIU succumbed to Bethel (Ind.) 3-0 (25-15, 25-22, 25-17) in the NAIA Women's Volleyball Championship Opening Round. The Rams fall to 35-8 on the season as they receive their first loss in 42 days.

Set one was certainly the Pilots' most dominant set of the match, as the Rams made a valiant effort in sets two and three. Set two saw CIU cut into a Bethel advantage trailing just 17-16 on a kill from Kira Rymer. The Rams again had a shot at a comeback in set three as Hadassah Davis brought the deficit to 15-13 on a kill. Both sets ultimately went the way of the Pilots leaving the Rams still looking for an elusive NAIA postseason win. 

Davis was superb as the freshman showed no nerves on the national stage, recording 13 kills in her first NAIA postseason match. Alana Sanjurjo was also an offensive force for CIU collecting six kills and two aces, while Rymer helped the Rams' cause with five kills and two block assists. Setter Kamelia De Jesus led CIU with 25 assists, and Kelcey Mangum solidified the Rams' defense with 12 digs. 

Hear from Coach Amber Haver postgame: Look, we need to be able to handle big moments.  Our opponent managed their nerves better than we did, tonight. Credit to Bethel, for keeping their composure and knocking us off our game.  Way too many unforced errors on our side of the court. We were making errors that we haven't made all season. It's the first loss we have suffered on our home court in two years. It's tough, but we had a good post game discussion and I trust  that we will grow from this loss. Thanks so much to all the fans that came out to show their support. It meant a great deal to us."

Up Next: The Rams will await an at-large bid to the NCCAA Championships, which will take place Dec. 1-3 in Point Lookout, Mo.