NEWARK, Del. - - The Wilmington University volleyball team clinched a postseason berth into the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference Tournament with a 3-0 victory over in-state rival Goldey-Beacom on Thursday night at the WU Athletics Complex.
Set scores for the match were 25-10, 25-14, and 25-21.
With the win, the Wildcats move their record to .500 for the first time this season and now sit at 14-14 overall, 10-5 in the CACC with two regular season matches to play. Seeding for the South Division will be decided in the last two games of the regular season.
After giving up the first two points of the first set, the Wildcats went on a 12-1 run to take a 12-3 lead. Another 9-1 run gave the Wildcats a 23-7 advantage and a block by Kacey Affrunti and Heather Pedrick ended the set, 25-10.
The Wildcats used a 10-2 run to take a 14-8 lead in the second set and then the Wildcats ended the game on a 9-1 run, including the final six points of the set, to win 25-14, and lead the match, 2-0. Sydney Hicks had five kills in the second set, hitting .625 without committing an error.
Wilmington used five consecutive points to take a 9-6 lead in the third set and then Kacey Affrunti picke dup an ace to take a 20-14 lead. The Lightning fought back, scoring three straight points to get to within 21-18. The Lightning were within 23-20 but then a service error gave the Wildcats match point. Jess Connelly ended the match with her fifth and final kill of the night. Kacey Affrunti had three of her five aces in the third set.
The senior class led the Wildcats on Thursday, as Sydney Hicks had a season high nine kills. Kacey Affrunti had six kills, five aces, and three blocks while Heather Pedrick chipped in with six kills, four aces, and nine digs. Jess Connelly added five kills, two aces, and six digs on the night.
As a team, the Wildcats had 14 aces and the back row was led by Elly Collins' 11 digs. Katie Bushong dished out 27 assists and added 10 digs.
The Wildcats head to Caldwell on Saturday for their final regular season weekend contest. Its an early start for the Wildcats, as first serve is set for 10:00 a.m.
