PHILADELPHIA, Pa. - - Five Wildcats put down six or more kills as the Wilmington University volleyball team swept Chestnut Hill, 3-0, in a Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference South Division match on Tuesday night inside Sorgenti Arena.
Set scores for the night were 25-14, 25-22, and 26-24.
The offense was spread amongst five Wildcats (19-11, 11-5 CACC), as they turned in their second best attacking performance of the season with a .364 team hitting percentage.
The Wildcats jumped out to an 8-2 lead in the first set, running off five straight points on the serve of Genevieve Hughes. Another 5-0 run put the Wildcats ahead 18-7 before a Bailey Andrews kill put the Wildcats up 20-10. Rebecca Rawlinson put down a kill and then Mandy Behiels served up an ace to take the first set, 25-14.
Wilmington took a 16-8 lead in the second set, but the Griffins (12-12, 9-7 CACC) went on a 10-4 run to close the gap to 20-18. The Wildcats answered with three straight points of their own to reopen a 23-18 lead. Angel Oliver had a solo block for set point, but the Griffins help off for two more points, 24-22. After a timeout, Bailey Andrews put down a kill to go up 2-0, 25-22.
The Wildcats held a 19-15 lead in the third set, but the Griffins scored four straight to tie the match, 19-19. Mandy Behiels needed to put down a termination to tie the game, 22-22, and Dorie Moore didn't a kill to tie it again at 23-23. The Wildcats earned match point with a Griffin error, but the home team tie the set, 24-24, with a kill. Mandy Behiels collected her 14th and final kill of the match to go up 25-24, and then collected her fourth ace of the night to end the match, 26-24.
The Wildcats hit better in each set, starting the match with 14 kills and five errors for a .300 hitting percentage in the first set. They put down 15 kills with only three errors for a .316 attack percentage in the second set, and then finished the match with 16 kills and only one error for a .484 hitting percentage in the final game.
Behiels led the Wildcats with 14 kills while not committing an error, hitting .424 for the match. She also led the team with four aces and added eight digs in the match. Rebecca Rawlinson collected nine kills and led the team with a .538 hitting percentage. Bailey Andrews also added nine kills on the outside for the Wildcats, hitting .318 for the match.
Sarah Couch dished out 37 assists in the three sets with eight digs while Elly Collins led the back row with 14 digs.
Wilmington has won four straight and have three matches remaining in the regular season. The home stretch begins on the road at Post on Saturday. The first serve is set for 2:00 p.m. in the Drubner Center.