(Garden City, NY) Nassau Women's Volleyball started off their 2019 season this weekend by hosting the Nassau Invitational. The Lions competed in three games on Saturday afternoon against teams outside of the NJCAA Region XV Conference. With a number of graduates last year, the team was full of fresh faces.

In the first match, Nassau went up against Raritan Valley CC. Abby Kavanaugh was one of the first to step up as a leader. She did her best to keep any attacked shots from landing on the Lion's side of the court. Through a tough battle, Nassau lost 0-3.

Taking what they learned from the Raritan game, the Lions came out hot in the second match against Harcum College. Abby Kavanaugh moved to the libero jersey after her performance in the first match. Rachel LeFave also stood out and proved that she could be the person that her team could turn to for support during tough moments. It was shaping up to look like a competitive game, with the first and last sets playing out 25-21. Unfortunately, the Lions couldn't hold on in the second set losing 25-10 and ended up falling to Harcum 3-0.

The third and final match was against CC Rhode Island. Abby Kavanaugh and Rachel LeFave continued to motivate the team and keep everyone positive after two earlier losses. It was a battle back and forth two well matched teams, but ultimately, the Lions fell in 3 sets, finishing 0-3.

Head Coach Kristine Abrams commented, "CCRI seemed to be a team we could beat if we put our minds to it and worked together. The game ended up being about who made the least mistakes. This tournament was good because it helped us realize where we need to work in order to start pulling out wins. This week we will focus on strengthening our defense and being more aggressive on offense."

The Lions play again on Thursday in a scrimmage against Farmingdale St. College.