NEWARK, Del. – The University of Delaware volleyball team will open up play in the Colonial Athletic Association tournament with a 7 p.m. first-round match against Towson on Saturday at Northeastern’s Solomon Court in Boston.

The Blue Hens, who finished the regular season with a 9-5 record in conference play, will enter the playoffs as the No. 3 seed. The team will battle the No. 6 Tigers for a chance to face the second-seeded Virginia Commonwealth Rams in the semifinals on Sunday at 7 p.m.

The Hens’ first-round match will be preceded by the Hofstra-William & Mary contest at 4 p.m. The winner of that bout will square off with the host and No. 1 seed Northeastern Huskies in the semifinals on Sunday at 4 p.m.

The championship match is slated for 7 p.m. on Monday. The finals and semifinals will be broadcast over the internet on the fee-based GoNU.TV website.

Delaware is looking to become the first team since George Mason in 2002-03 to win back-to-back championships. Last season, the Hens took the title with a 3-1 victory over Hofstra in the finals.

Junior libero Steph Barry leads Delaware after earning preseason CAA Player of the Year accolades. An All-American last season, she currently ranks first in the conference and 10th in the nation with a 5.38 digs-per-set average.

The 2008 edition of the Blue Hens also has a youthful flair with 11 of the team’s 14 roster spots filled by freshmen and sophomores.

Second-year standouts Jess Chason, Katie Dennehy, Paige Erickson, and Greta Gibboney (above) have all made solid contributions to the team throughout the season. Chason ranks second in the conference with 13 double-doubles, while she leads the team with 1,001 assists. Dennehy and Gibboney are tied for third in the conference with 34 aces, and Erickson leads Delaware with a .241 hitting percentage.

Freshmen Kim Stewart and Elena Delle Donne have also made immediate impacts, combining to win eight of the 12 Rookie of the Week honors in the CAA this season. Stewart currently leads all conference freshmen in kills, aces, and digs, while DelleDonne paces the field of first-year stars in blocks.

Fellow freshman Meghan Bonk has also started her career in fine fashion, appearing in all 31 matches. She currently ranks fourth on the team in blocks and fifth in kills.

The Blue Hens are riding an impressive second-half surge after starting the season slow during Tournament play. Since September 23, the team is 13-5, including 9-2 in its last 11 contests.

The CAA’s No. 3 seed has made it to the final match during four of the previous six tournaments, including the 2004 Blue Hens who eventually fell to Towson in the championship match. Since 2002, no other seed has made it to the finals more often.