CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. – The Hampton University volleyball team split a pair of matches on Saturday at the Boston College Invitational at the Power Gym, falling to Fairfield in straight sets before beating Bryant in four.

The Lady Pirates (4-1) beat Bryant 3-1 (25-15, 27-29, 25-22, 25-18) after falling to Fairfield 3-0 (25-12, 26-24, 26-24).

Junior Vendula Strakova (Brno, Czech Republic) recorded a combined 36 kills over the two matches, and she recorded her second-double-double of the season against Bryant with a team-high 20 kills and 11 digs.

She also had three service aces in that match.

Junior Krista Kraskura (Kuldiga, Latvia) added 19 kills against Bryant, recording just four errors to hit .469 for the match.

The Lady Pirates took a 6-3 lead in the first set against Bryant, before the Bulldogs closed to within 8-7. From there, Hampton went on an 8-2 run to take a 16-9 lead after an ace from Strakova. Sophomore Allysa Medina (Menifee, Calif.) later added a kill to put Hampton up 20-13, before Strakova later registered a kill to give Hampton the 25-15 win.

After Bryant took the second set to tie the match at 1-1, the Lady Pirates found themselves down 10-7 in the third set. But a 7-2 run gave Hampton a 14-12 lead, and the Lady Pirates held off a late Bryant push that tied the set at 22-22.

Hampton scored the last three points to regain control of the match.

Hampton took a 7-6 lead in the fourth set on a Kraskura kill, before Bryant scored four straight points to take a 10-7 lead. But the Lady Pirates fought back and took a 14-13 lead after a kill from senior Petra Parros (Bloomfield, N.J.).

After Bryant cut the lead to 20-18, the Lady Pirates scored the last five points to clinch the match.

The Lady Pirates hit a season-best .305 (57 kills, 21 errors in 118 attacks) against Bryant, while the Bulldogs hit just .210. Hampton also held a 7-3 edge in service aces.

Fairfield took control early against Hampton in the first set of the early match, then led the second set 10-2. But Hampton went on a 13-5 run to tie the set at 15-15 on a Strakova block, then the Lady Pirates took an 18-16 lead after a Kraskura kill.

Fairfield went on a 6-2 run to take a 22-20 lead, but the Lady Pirates fought back and forced set point, up 24-23 after a Parros kill. But Fairfield scored the next three points to take the set and go up 2-0 in the match.

The third set was close throughout, with the Lady Pirates leading 12-11 at one point. After several back-and-forths, the Lady Pirates held a 16-14 lead. Hampton led 17-15 after a kill from junior Sonja Maksimovic (Belgrade, Serbia), but Fairfield fought back.

Hampton led 22-21, but Fairfield scored five of the last seven points to hand Hampton its first loss of the season.

The Lady Pirates hit .325 (41 kills, 15 errors in 80 attacks), but Fairfield hit .481 as a team, thanks to 45 kills and just seven errors in 79 total attempts. Strakova had a team-high 16 kills against Fairfield, the lone Lady Pirates to register double-digit kills in the match.

The Lady Pirates will take on Boston College on Sunday at 1 p.m. to conclude this weekend's tournament. For more information on Hampton University volleyball, please call the Office of Sports Information at (757) 727-5811, or visit the official Pirates website at www.hamptonpirates.com.