AMHERST, Mass. – The Bates College volleyball team battled hard but came up short in its NESCAC opener Friday night, falling 3–1 (16-25, 20-25, 25–21, 20–25) at Amherst College.

Senior Ami Evans led the Bobcats (5–2, 0–1 NESCAC) with 13 kills and 13 digs for her second double-double of the season, while first-year Jaime Bartley-Cohen added a season-best seven kills and sophomore Lauren Croom dished out a match-topping 28 assists. Defensively, junior Sofia Castiglioni (five kills) and sophomore Anaïs Reneaum (six kills) each tallied a team-high four blocks while junior Isabel Bettencourt and senior Ellie Asada chipped in 11 and 10 digs, respectively.

Bates came alive in the third set, hitting .211 as a team to extend the match, but the Mammoths (4–1, 1–0 NESCAC) closed it out in the fourth. Charlotte Rasmussen paced the victors with 14 kills.

The Bobcats return to action Saturday with another conference matchup at Hamilton. First serve is slated for 2:00 p.m.