(Garden City, NY ) On Tuesday night, the Nassau Lions took on the Suffolk Community College Sharks. It was a suspenseful game going all the way into 5 sets. It was a battle until the very end.

In the first set, the Lions held their own against the Sharks going point for point. The women knew that with a team full of freshman and only two sophomores that they had a lot to prove. Unfortunately, they had a few key mistakes, and just barely lost 24-26.

The Lions completely kept their composure going into the second set, and were able to capitalize on a few faults the Sharks made. They took the game handily finishing 25-18. The Lions took this confidence boost, and put it towards the third set hoping to take home the gold after this match. But the Sharks had other plans. They rallied and took the third set 22-25. 

NCC was not about to let the Sharks walk out with a win that easily. They answered taking the fourth set 25-20, leading them into the fifth and final set of the night. 

It was a battle point for point the entire game. The Lions were fatigued, but not ready to give up just yet. The Lions lead most of the way, but the Sharks never trailed far behind. A couple of times throughout the set, the Lions thought they had won when the refs came back saying they had to take back the point due to a touched out ball. It was during those moments where the coaches were wondering if the women were going to keep their composure and continue to produce with a winning attitude - and they prevailed with flying colors. The Lions stuck it out and defeated Suffolk 22-20!

Head Coach Kristine Abrams commented after the game, "What a nail biter, huh?! I am just so incredibly proud of the women tonight. They are such a young team, and still learning to deal with the high pressure situations that come with games like these, and I thought they really handled this game with grace and beauty. The women really worked hard for this win. They definitely deserve the victory!"

Notable players were Alicja Zaborowska who had 13 kills and 18 digs. Emily Kauffman wasn't far behind with 13 kills and 17 digs. Kiara Tibbs tallied 19 kills and 3 block solos. Genesis Zepeda had an impressive 48 assists, 3 kills, and 7 digs. Overall, Nassau had a total of 119 serves, and only missed 7, which is a big improvement for the team.

They will be back in action at home on Thursday to take on the Kingsborough Wave!