PHILADELPHIA, Pa. - - For the first time since 2012, the Wilmington University volleyball traveled to Philadelphia and took a match from Jefferson, opening Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference play with a 3-0 sweep on Wednesday night inside the Gallagher Center.
Set scores for the match were 26-24, 25-17, and 26-24.
It is the first win inside the Gallagher Center since the Wildcats defeated the then named Philadelphia University Rams, 3-0, on October 17, 2012. It is the first sweep of the Rams since winning, 3-0, at the WU Athletics Complex on October 1, 2013. The Wildcats are now 3-17 on the road against the Rams.
For the second time in four days, the Wildcats (4-4, 1-0 CACC) battled back from set point, trailing 24-22 and by as much as 23-18 late in the first game. With the game tied, 17-17, the Rams (3-7, 0-1 CACC) rattled off five straight and used a 6-1 run to take a 23-18 lead. An error gave the ball back to Wilmington and on the serve of Claudia Melendez, they scored four straight to get back to 23-22. A kill gave the Rams set point, but then an error kept the Wildcats alive. They got kills from Eliza Schneider and Alex Serna and then a block from Karalyn Osborne and Serna cemented the comeback, 26-24.
The second set was tied, 9-9, before the Wildcats gained control. They scored three straight and never relinquished the lead. A 6-1 run gave the Wildcats a 20-13 lead, ending on back-to-back aces from Haley Holland. The Rams clawed to within 23-17, but then Osborne put down a kill and teamed up with Serna for another game ending block, 25-17.
The Rams jumped out to leads of 12-8 and 15-11 in the third set, but then the Wildcats scored six straight to regain a 17-15 lead. The Rams battled right back though, using a 5-2 run to be the first to 20. Back-to-back points gave the Wildcats a 22-21 lead, but the Rams eventually earned set point, 24-23. A bad set tied the game, 24-24, and the back-to-back blocks by Karalyn Osborne and Alex Serna ended the set, 26-24, and the match, 3-0.
Alex Serna, Karla Nunez-Rivera, and Eliza Schneider led the Wildcats with six kills each. The front row came away with 14 total blocks, nine block assists each from Serna and Osborne. Claudia Melendez passed out 14 assists while Gabby Barth picked up 12 digs to lead the back row.
The Wildcats step out of the CACC this weekend as they travel to Garden City, New York, to play Molloy and Adelphi on Saturday.