SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. - - The Wilmington University volleyball team split a pair of matches to open the 2015 season, defeating Davis & Elkins, 3-0, early in the day before falling to Adelphi, 3-1, in the nightcap on day one of the Shippensburg University Tournament on Friday.
Set scores for the match against Davis & Elkins were 25-12, 25-11, and 25-14.
Set scores for the match against Adelphi were 22-25, 25-20, 19-25, and 22-25.
Senior Alex Siolos led the Wildcats (1-1) in both matches, posting a team high 10 kills against Davis & Elkins in the season opener. She added six assists, three digs, and four aces in the team's first win of the season. In the nightcap, the lefty posted a double-double by putting down a team high 15 kills and a team high 24 assists.
In the first set of the season, the Wildcats were in a close set, only leading 11-9 before turning on the jets against Davis & Elkins. The Wildcats rattled off 4 straight points to start the run and then had a pair of five straight points to cap the set. They wouldn't look back from there, going on to take the second and third sets without ever being behind.
Freshman Miranda Shaw dished out 14 assists in her collegiate debut while also adding seven digs. Senior Shelby Henderson led the team with 13 digs while classmate Kaitlin DiGiacinto posted nine kills and 10 kills in the win.
In the day's second match, the Wildcats broke a 12-12 tie in the second set and gradually extended the lead out to as many as six at 21-15. Back-to-back kills by Eile Harris and Allison Briley gave the Wildcats set point, and Siolos tied the match with a kill, 25-20.
Adelphi scored four straight points to stretch its lead out to 12-6 in the third set before the Wildcats clawed all the way back to within one at 21-20. But the Panthers held on with three straight points to move ahead, 2-1.
The Wildcats again needed to battle from behind in the fourth set, finding themselves down, 17-11, midway through the game. Back-to-back kills by Siolos started a string of six consecutive points to tie the frame, 17-17. But the Panthers answered with four straight points of their own to regain control before finishing off the Wildcats, 25-22.
Erin Bistany also finishing in double digit kills with 11, hitting at a .471 clip by only making three errors on 17 swings. Harris collected seven kills, four bloack assists, and two solo blocks in the match. Shaw added another 19 assists and nine digs while DiGiacinto contributed eight kills and 12 digs in the match.
The Wildcats remain at the SU Volleyball Tournament tomorrow and take to the courts starting at 11:30 a.m. The Wildcats will begin the day with Kutztown before facing host Shippensburg at 7:00 p.m.