The Hamilton College Continentals lost their NESCAC match against the Bates College Bobcats in three sets at Bates' Alumni Gym on Friday night.

Hamilton's postseason hopes were dashed with the setback as the Continentals' record dipped to 2-7 in the conference and 9-10 overall. Hamilton tried to extend the match with a strong performance in the third set but ultimately fell by scores of 25-20, 25-13 and 26-24.

The Bobcats (10-13, 4-5 NESCAC) clinched a spot in the eight-team NESCAC championship with their sixth straight win at home. Bates boasted a team hitting percentage of .280.

Giuliana Rankin '20 led the Continentals with 10 kills and chipped in three blocks. Rankin has reached double digits in kills nine times in 18 matches this fall. Erin Donahue '18 smashed eight kills and Jessica Weston '17 added three blocks.

Kyndal Burdin '18 passed out a team-high 13 assists for Hamilton and Meghan Wilkinson '19 recorded 10. Christine Zizzi '18, who is fourth in the conference in digs per set, paced the Continentals with 12. Wilkinson and Kendall Searcy '20 contributed 10 apiece.

Bates' Chandler McGrath led all players with 20 kills. Taylor Stafford-Smith enjoyed a fine all-around match with 15 kills, 11 digs and three blocks. Jacqueline Forney handed out 45 assists and Hannah Tardie served five aces. Tardie led four Bobcats in double figures in digs with a match-high 13.

Hamilton held a 15-14 edge in a tight first set as neither team led by more than two points until Bates took control with a 7-1 run for a 21-16 advantage. In the second set, the Continentals grabbed a 7-6 lead, but Bates scored the next 12 points and cruised to the two-set cushion.

Hamilton came back to play its best volleyball in the third set with 14 kills and four errors on 40 attempts (.250). After sitting out the first two sets, Burdin passed out 13 assists while Rankin had six kills with no attack errors.

The Continentals went up 22-20 on a Rankin kill, prompting Bates' first timeout of the night. The Bobcats got the side out on a kill by Claire Naughton, and Bates retook the lead at 23-22 on back-to-back kills by McGrath. A kill by Hamilton's Margaret O'Brien '18 tied the set at 24-all but Lisa Slivken dropped a kill for the 25-24 lead, and a final big swing by Stafford-Smith sealed the victory.

The Continentals end their season with another NESCAC match at Colby College on Saturday, Oct. 29 at 2 p.m.