The Briar Cliff women's volleyball team returned home Wednesday night but fell short against Dordt, dropping a three-set match (21-25, 20-25, 21-25) inside the Newman Flanagan Center.

The Chargers stayed within striking distance throughout the match. After falling behind in the opening frame, Briar Cliff made a late push with kills from Caton Firkins and Brooklyn Voss, but Dordt was able to close out the set. In the second, the Chargers rallied to even the score at 13-13 behind a pair of kills from Tamika Eastman and a service ace from Valeria Viroomal. The Defenders responded with a run to take the frame. The third set was another back-and-forth battle, with the Chargers pulling even at 19-19 on a Firkins kill before the Defenders sealed the match.

Firkins powered the Charger offense with 6 kills on a .227 hitting clip, while Eastman tallied 5, and Voss added 4. Isabelle Lenz also contributed 4 kills along with 5 digs on the night.

The setting duo of Kylie Hart and Iwalani Beltran combined for a total of 23 assists. Beltran also recorded a service ace.

Defensively, Avery Beller anchored the back line with 14 digs, followed by Addy Pigott with 9. At the net, Aubrey Hoeft tallied 6 block assists, while Firkins and Voss added 3 apiece. The Chargers finished with 18 total block assists on the night and 4 service aces.

The Chargers return to action this Saturday, traveling to Hastings, NE, to take on Hastings College for another GPAC match-up. First serve is set for 4:30 p.m.