Copyright 2016; Wilmington University. All rights reserved. File photo of Kongevold against Chestnut Hill, taken by Frank Stallworth.
WILMINGTON, Del. - - Despite winning the first set, the Wilmington University volleyball team fell to crosstown rival Goldey-Beacom, 3-1, in Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference action on Wednesday night at the Joseph West Jones Center.
Set scores for the match were 25-10, 20-25, 19-25, and 23-25.
The Wildcats (7-9, 4-3 CACC) came out of the gates on fire, hitting .619 in the first set with 14 kills and only one error on 21 attempts. But after the first set, the Lightning (5-7, 2-5 CACC) outhit the Wildcats, putting down 47 kills in the final three games to the Wildcats' 27.
Everything was working for the Wildcats in the first set, as they jumped out to leads of 6-1 and 11-2. Freshman Emma Kongevold put down three straight kills and four kills in a 5-0 run to give the visitors a 16-4 lead. Jenna Brown served an ace before Eile Harris gave the Wildcats a 23-7 lead. The Lightning scored three straight to make it respectable before the Wildcats closed out the set, 25-10.
The Wildcats used a 4-0 run to tie the second set, 11-11, but a 7-3 Lightning run turned the set in favor of the home team, 18-14. Back-to-back Lightning errors brought the Wildcats to within 20-19, but three straight kills and a service ace gave the home team set point, 24-19.
The Lightning carried the momentum into the third set, opening with a 5-2 lead. The Wildcats battled back to tie the set, 7-7, but the Lightning went on another 5-2 run to regain a 12-9 lead. It was tough for the Wildcats to gain back-to-back points the rest of the way, as the Lightning continued to hold leads at 16-12, and 20-15. The Lightning finished off the set with back-to-back kills, 25-19.
Looking to stay in the match, the Wildcats jumped out to early leads in the fourth, taking the first three points and held a 7-5 lead. The Wildcats led 12-10, but the Lightning fought back with three straight points for their first lead of the game, 13-12. A Harris and Jill Braunsberg block tied the set, 13-13, but the Lightning went on a 5-1 run to retake the lead, 18-14. Still down 22-19, the Wildcats used a service error to go on a 3-0 run, tying the match at both 22-22 and 23-23. But a Wilmington attack error and a GOldey-Beacom kill put the set and the match away for the Lightning.
Allison Briley led the Wildcats with 10 kills and three aces while Kongevold finished with 10 kills and a .333 attack percentage, making only two errors on the night. Braunsberg dished out a team high 23 assists while Addalyn finished with a team high 14 digs.
The Wildcats return to the WU Athletics Complex for their next CACC contest on Saturday. They host two-time CACC Tournament Champions Post on Saturday with the first service set for 12:00 p.m.