COLCHESTER, Vt. - - The Wilmington University volleyball team served its way to its first victory over the season on Saturday, falling to Dominican, 3-0, before defeating host Saint Michael's, 3-0, inside the Ross Sports Center.
Set scores against Dominican were 26-24, 27-25, and 25-12.
Set scores against Saint Michael's were 25-22, 25-23, and 25-19.
Match vs. Dominican:
The Wildcats couldn't close out the Chargers at the end of sets, falling to the conference foe in a nonconference matchup at Saint Michael's.
Leading 24-22 in the first set, the Wildcats couldn't find the final point. The Chargers rallied and won four straight points to win the first set, 26-24.
The Wildcats led the second set, 12-5, and then the Chargers came back to eventually tie it at 14-14. The Wildcats took a 20-17 lead but the Chargers again rallied to take a 22-20 lead. Kills from Karla Nunez-Rivera and Makailah Ford put the Wildcats up, 24-22, but again the Chargers had an answer, scoring three straight to save set point and lead, 25-24. A Wilmington service error and a Charger kill gave the Chargers a 27-25 set two win.
Back-to-back points for the Wildcats tied the third set, 10-10, but then the Chargers scored three-straight for a 13-10 lead. An error brought the Wildcats to within 13-11, but then the Chargers rattled off nine straight to take control. They scored 12 of the final 13 points to take the set, 25-12.
Cassidy Miller had eight kills and hit .412 while Eliza Schneider had eight kills and hit .400. Chelsea Blaine-Agett had five blocks and nine digs while Karla Nunez-Rivera led with 10 digs. Christine Covello dished out 13 assists.
Match vs. Saint Michael's:
The Wildcats served their way to their first victory of the season, collecting 16 aces in the three-set match. They also finished with a season's best .158 attack percentage with 35 kills.
Leading 12-11, the Wildcats used a 6-1 run to gain an 18-12 lead and hang on down the stretch. The Purple Knights used back-to-back points to close within 21-18 and then again to close to within 24-22. But Christine Covello and Cassidy miller combined for a block to take the opening set, 25-22.
The Wildcats then scored the opening six points of the second set, but the Knights answered and eventually led, 10-9. The Wildcats scored five straight to take a 14-10 lead but then the Knights used an 11-4 run to grab a 21-18 lead. Eliza Schneider started another 5-0 run with a kill and an ace from Haley Holland put the Wildcats up, 23-21. The teams traded points from there with Karla Nunez-Rivera putting down a kill for the 25-23 win.
The Wildcats jumped out to a 7-2 lead in the third set, but it was a 5-1 spurt that broke a 12-12 tie and put the Wildcats in front the rest of the way. Three straight points put the Wildcats up 22-17, and then a kill from Schneider and an ace from Morgan Daniels ended the match, 25-19.
Karla Nunez-Rivera led the Wildcats with 13 kills and only one error, hitting .387 for the match. She added 11 digs for the double-double. Eliz Schneider had 13 kills and hit .290, adding four digs. Haley Holland led the team with five aces while Nunez-Rivera added four. Christine Covello dished out 28 assists while Cassidy Miller led with five blocks.
Up Next:
The Wildcats open Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference play this week, traveling to Lakewood, New Jersey, on Wednesday night to take on Georgian Court. The match is set to begin at 6:00 p.m.