Copyright 2015; Wilmington University. All rights reserved. File photo of Alex Siolos.
CALDWELL, N.J. - - The Wilmington University volleyball team only committed 10 errors on its way to a sweep of Caldwell on Saturday afternoon at the Newman Center.
Set scores for the match were 25-14, 25-20, and 25-21.
The Wildcats (18-6, 11-2 CACC) hit .285 for the match, including .353 in the first set and .359 in the second set. Rachael DiLeonardo's 13 kills and .522 attack percentage led Caldwell (16-10, 8-5 CACC), but the team committed 21 errors and only hit .142 for the match.
Runs of 6-0 and 5-0 early in the first set propelled the Wildcats to an early 12-3 lead. The Cougars closed the gap to 14-7, but the Wildcats answered to reopen leads of 17-7 and 20-9. Alex Siolos started a 3-0 run with back-to-back kills before Kaitlin DiGiacinto ended the set with a kill, 25-14.
Caldwell started hot in the second set, opening a 10-4 lead. Siolos started a 5-1 run with another kill before Allison Briley tied the set, 12-12, with a kill. The Cougars took a brief 19-18, before Erin BIstany and Miranda Shaw put the Wildcats ahead 20-19. Following a Caldwell timeout, Briley put down back-to-back balls and an attack error put the Wildcats ahead 23-19. Caldwell called another timeout but another error put the Wildcats ahead 24-19 before the Cougars could come up with a point. But Briley didn't allow the Cougars to start a comeback, ending the game with a kill, 25-20.
The Wildcats carried the momentum into the third set, opening a 6-1 lead. Another 9-3 run gave the Wildcats a 15-6 lead causing Caldwell to call an early timeout. Caldwell climbed back to 17-13, but could only get to within four once more at 19-15. Bistany started a 3-0 run with a kill before a Caldwell error put the Wildcats within two points of the match. The Cougars closed to within 23-21, with four straight points. But back-to-back attack errors by the Cougars ended the set, 25-21, and the match, 3-0.
Siolos led the Wildcats with 14 kills, only committing one error on 29 attempts for a .448 attack percentage. Bistany collected nine kills on 18 swings, only committing two errors for a .389 attack percentage. Shelby Henderson led the back row with 18 digs while Briley collected nine kills and 11 digs. DiGiacinto finished with seven kills and 11 digs as well.
After a four-game road trip, the Wildcats return to the WU Athletics Complex for their next two contests. They Wildcats welcome Chestnut Hill to Newark on Tuesday for a 7:00 p.m. match.
Tuesday is the team's JDRF Awareness Game and the team will be raising awareness and accepting donations throughout the match.