BALTIMORE—In an up-and-down five-set match, the UMBC volleyball team fell to America East rival Stony Brook, 3-2 in the conference opener for both teams Friday evening at the RAC Arena.

The Retrievers (10-6, 0-1 AE) out-hit the Seawolves, .215 to .175, for the match, but it was Stony Brook (7-7, 1-0 AE) who came away with the 25-23, 15-25, 13-25, 25-11, 16-14 victory.

Junior Ali Loynachan (Whitby, Ontario/Sinclair) hit .391 with 11 kills and four blocks, while freshman Hannah Schmidt(Catonsville, Md./Mt. de Sales) posted a double-double with 12 kills and 14 digs. Senior Allie Spaay (Kenosha, Wis./Kenosha Tremper) also notched a double-double with 33 assists and 10 digs, and senior Iman Kennedy (Charlotte, N.C./Independence) recorded a game-high five total blocks to go along with eight kills.

The Seawolves were led by Evann Slaughter, who hit .387 with 15 kills, and Alicia Nelson, who posted a double-double with a game-high 17 kills and 10 digs.

The first set was back-and-forth, as the teams alternated the first 11 points, and neither team led by more than two points until Stony Brook scored seven straight points to take a 16-11 lead. The Retrievers battled back with an 8-3 rally to pull to within 22-21, but they could never regain the lead, and the Seawolves won, 25-23. Schmidt hit .500 with four kills to lead UMBC, while Nelson hit .417 with six kills.

Set two was all UMBC, as the Retrievers hit .321 and held the Seawolves to just .097 in the 25-15 win. UMBC jumped out to a 16-6 lead, and Stony Brook could not get closer than five points the rest of the way. Kennedy had three kills on four total swings in the set.

The Retrievers dominated set three, as well, outhitting the Seawolves .500 to .032. Like the previous set, UMBC took a big early lead, 12-3, and led by as many as 12 points on three different occasions, including the final score of 25-13. Four different Retrievers had three kills in the set, and UMBC had four total blocks.

But the fourth set was a different story, as the Seawolves took control with a 7-3 run. The Retrievers rallied to pull to within one at 8-7, but Stony Brook pulled away with 14 of the next 15 points for a commanding 22-8 lead and eventually won, 25-11. The Seawolves hit .333 to the Retrievers' -.020.

The fifth set was a heartbreaker for UMBC, who jumped out to a 7-2 lead and looked to be in control before Stony Brook scored five straight points to knot it up. The set saw six more ties, the final at 14-14, but the Seawolves scored the final two points to take it, 16-14, and wrap up the victory.

The Retrievers return to action next Friday, Sept. 30, when they host Binghamton at 7 p.m.