Box Score The Maritime College women's volleyball team earned a key Skyline Conference win over Purchase College on Wednesday night. The Privateers dropped a tightly contested opening set 26-24, but were able to regroup and come back to beat the Panthers in four sets, 24-26, 25-18, 25-13, and 25-18.

Maritime College got off to a hot start in the opening frame as they jumped ahead 14-8, however, the Privateers offense wasn't able to keep the efficient hitting going and let the Panthers back into it. A kill from Kayla Steele (Howard Beach, N.Y./Construction) out of the middle late in the set gave Maritime two set points at 24-22, but Purchase was able to string together four straight points and steal the first set.

The second set continued the even play as both team were trading points up until it was all tied up at 16. This time, it was the Privateers turn to make a push and the offense stepped up when it counted most. Maritime tallied six kills and two service aces in the final nine points that they won. The high-powered offense gave them a 25-18 victory to even up the match.

The momentum from the big second set win carried over into the third as the Privateers steamrolled the Panthers to a 25-13 win. Both Steele and Celyna Custodio (Danbury, Conn./Danbury) were firing on all cylinders in the third set, combining for six kills out of the middle. The entire team played it's volleyball in the third set as they hit a match-high .269 as a team.

The Privateers weren't going to let Purchase back into the match and got off to another strong start in the set. Maritime exploited some offensive errors from the Panthers and complimented it with some strong kills of their own. Leading 20-10 and just five points away from the win, the Privateers started to relax and Purchase began to rally. After a five-point run from the Panthers, head coach Michele Murray called timeout, which led to a key service error from Purchase. The small shift in momentum put Maritime over the edge and they picked up a 25-18 victory in the final set.

Abigail Steele picked up a double-double for the Privateers by recording 10 kills and 12 digs. Custodio finished in double digits offensively as well by tallying 10 kills of her own. Kayla Steele (Howard Beach, N.Y./Construction) added six, while Meghan Eagleton (Poughkeepsie, N.Y./Roy C. Ketcham) and Rylee Malone (Southington, Conn./University High School of Science & Engineering) played solid as well with four and three kills. Eagleton was stellar on the defensive end by picking up a team-high 19 kills. Sophomore setter Erika Kirchner (Meadowmere Park, N.Y./Lawrence) dished out a match-high 29 assists.

The Privateers get back on the court tomorrow night as they travel to John Jay at 7:00 p.m.