BOURBONNAIS, Ill. --- A valiant rally by the University of St. Francis women's volleyball team still left the Saints four points short in the end, dousing the hopes of upsetting top-seeded Olivet Nazarene University in the first round of the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference Tournament in a 25-23, 25-22, 23-25, 17-25, 15-11 contest Tuesday night.
 

The loss marked the second setback of the season in five sets to the Tigers, who have dropped only one contest in 19 matches this season.
 

Numerous USF players stepped up in the two-plus hour match including Desiree Anderson (FR/Joliet, Ill.), who authored a double-double with her 15 kills and 21 digs. She also attacked at a .267 clip.
 

Taylor Valant (SR/St. Anne, Ill.) closed out her career with a match-high 17 kills, hitting at a .216 percentage.
 

Lauren Stefanski (SR/Plainfield, Ill.) hit at just under a 30 percent mark (.296), collecting 11 kills.
 

Alexis Engst (JR/Bloomington, Ill.) and Hannah Pacheco (SO/Lockport, Ill.) each delivered 20-plus assists with Engst finishing at 28 and Pacheco at 23.
 

Two other Saints recorded double-figure dig counts besides Anderson. Hannah Monfre (SO/Franklin, Wis.) boasted a team-high 35 with Paelmo coming off the bench to register 17.
 

Stephanie Woods (JR/Westchester, Ill.) was a force upfront with her 11 blocks (four solo/seven assist).
 

Twelve ties were featured in the tight first set with Olivet Nazarene breaking the last one at 23-all with a kill and an ace. 
 

The second set was the one that the Saints wish they could have back. They led 6-1 early and again 19-12 before Olivet Nazarene responded with ten of the next 11 points to go up 22-20 and eventually gain the three-point win.
 

Similar to the first set, the third one was just as close with neither team gaining more than a three-point lead. Brooklyn Withey (SR/Lapeer, Mich.) and Valant kept the Saints alive with late kills.
 

Set 4 was the most lopsided of the match with the Saints jumping out to an 11-4 advantage. Olivet Nazarene would close to 18-16 before USF forced the fifth set with seven of the final eight points. Two of those points came from Valant kills.
 

Five ties were a part of the early action in the final set before the Saints gained an 8-6 advantage at the mid-point. Olivet Nazarene, however, tallied seven of the next eight points and the Saints could not recover.  

With the victory, Olivet Nazarene advances to the semifinal round of the tournament to face No.4 seed Indiana University South Bend, while the Saints conclude their season at 13-13.