The Lynx fell in three sets (25-15, 25-17, 25-18) Saturday morning to host Maine Maritime but rebounded to sweep Maine-Presque Isle, 3-0 (25-16, 25-11, 25-19) in Lesley's 2011 openers and first of two matches for the Lynx on the day.
Maine Mariritme turned a 9-8 lead into a 16-10 margin, forcing Tricia Lawler's first timeout as Lynx head coach, but it did little to slow the Mariners attack in a 25-15 opening set victory.
A Kayla Henry kill early in Game 2 brought the Lynx to within 4-3, but two straight MMA points forced another Lawler timeout at 6-3, and Lesley responded with kills from Megan Ortwein and Katelyn Miller bringing the team to within 7-6.
A 9-4 run then put the Mariners ahead 16-10 as the home team went on to with the second set 25-17. For the Lynx, Ortwein totaled four kills in the set.
For a second straight game, the Lynx jumped out to a 1-0 lead, this time on a Henry kill from Miller. With the set tied at 3-3, a Danielle Johnson kill from Miller put the Lynx back on top, and Miller assisted on two more Henry kills that put the visitors on top 6-5.
A 6-1 Mariners run pulled MMA on top 12-7 before two Aisha Jenkins kills from Miller made it a 13-10 contest. Maine Maritime rattled off a 7-3 run snapped by a Johnson kill, cutting the margin to 20-14.
Trailing 24-16, an Ortwein kill from Miller and Alyson Finbow's first collegiate service ace pulled the Lynx to 24-18, but MMA's Chelsea Ward's kill made it a 25-18 final.
The Lynx rebounded from the loss, turning around and passing along a 3-0 thumping to the University of Maine-Presque Isle just minutes later, 25-16, 25-11, 25-19.
The freshman Johnson, who came on strong in the final two sets against Maritime, led all players with a match-high 10 kills. Ortwein followed with nine, and Miller tossed down six kills on eight attempts with only one error for a match-best .625 hitting percentage, also leading all players with 20 assists.
While one freshman Lynx paced the team's attack, another led the defense, as Rachel Frederickson led all players with a match-high 10 digs. She also did her part on offense, leading all players with six service aces.
At 1-1, Lesley is set to take on WPI on Thursday, September 8.