WILMINGTON, Del. - A hot start wasn't enough to carry the Bloomfield College volleyball team Saturday afternoon as the Bears fell to Wilmington University 18-25, 25-20, 25-10, 16-25 and 15-5 during the Wildcats Homecoming weekend. The loss snapped an eight-game win streak for Bloomfield and was their first defeat in Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) play this season. The Bears record now stands at 11-2 overall and 5-1 in conference action while Wilmington improved to 12-5 overall and 6-1 in CACC play.
 
Bloomfield opened the first set by hitting a decent .171 from the floor on 12 kills and just five errors. The visitors secured Set 1 with senior Diannmarie Rivera (Trujillo Alto, P.R.) serving the last two points for a 25-18 win. In Set 2, the teams battled point-for-point most of the way until the Wildcats pulled away with the final five points for a 25-20 victory and tied the match at 1-1.
 
In the third set, the home team continued their momentum, opening up with a 9-2 spurt and eventually took the set, 25-10 to put the Bears down 2-1 in the match. Bloomfield swung the tide in their favor capturing Set 4, 25-16 and forced a fifth and deciding set.
 
The Bears felt confident heading into Set 5, boasting a 2-0 record in matches that went the distance this season however the Wildcats and their Homecoming fans had other plans as they reeled off the first five points. Wilmington eventually took the set 15-5 and the match 3-2 over Bloomfield.
 
Offensively, Rivera tallied a team-high 18 kills to go along with 12 digs while junior Valerie Bermudez (San Juan, P.R.) chipped in 26 digs and 14 kills in the setback. Defensively, sophomore libero, Samantha Rios (Juncos, P.R.) recorded a season-high 33 digs for the Bears as Edmarie Feytes (San Juan, P.R.) and Jacquelyn Madlock (Alto Loma, Calif.) notched 22 and 20 assists respectively.
 
The Bears will look to shake off the CACC loss when they travel to Waterbury, Conn. on Wednesday to face the Eagles of Post University. The high-flying North Division match up is set to start at 7 pm. Stay up-to-date with the latest news, including game previews and recaps, from the Bloomfield College athletic department by liking the Bears on Facebook and following the Bears on Twitter or Instagram @GO_BCBears. Use the hashtag #BCBears to join the conversation.