Pepperdone Boxscore / UNCG Boxscore

FULLERTON, Calif. –With senior co-captain and all-conference selection Kelly Gibson on the bench nursing a knee injury, the University of Delaware volleyball team could not muster enough to pull out a victory on the last day of the Radisson Suites Buena Park Invitational, falling to No. 28 Pepperdine, 3-0 (25-15, 25-12, 25-20), and UNC Greensboro, 3-0 (25-19, 25-22, 25-21), on Saturday.

Gibson, the team’s star outside hitter, suffered a knee injury in the final moments of Friday night’s loss to Cal State Fullerton. With the team’s top offensive weapon unable to compete, the Blue Hens (0-3) lacked enough firepower to keep up with the likes of the Wave and Spartans.

Seeing an increased role on the outside with Gibson on the shelf, sophomore Katie Dennehy (at right) posted a team-high 13 kills against Pepperdine and 10 against Greensboro. She also added three aces, effectively tripling her career output.

In the first game against the Wave, the Hens looked strong in the beginning. However, after battling to a 7-7 tie against the perennial power, Delaware could not handle the Pepperdine attack as the opposition took off on an 8-2 run to pull ahead by six at 15-9.

With a comfortable lead and a well-balanced attack, the Wave eased into a 25-15 victory despite Dennehy’s second career ace during a brief Blue Hen rally.

The second set played much like the first with Delaware holding its own early before Pepperdine stretched its lead late. The Blue Hens held an early advantage but saw it slowly slip away after the Wave went on a brief run to take a two- point lead at 8-6.

A Pepperdine kill and three miscues by the Blue Hens allowed the Wave to pad its lead at 12-6. Although Dennehy served as a one-person scoring machine in the middle of the set, her three kills and one ace during a 10-point span could not pull the team any closer.

Eventually the Wave used a 9-4 run to end the set and post a 25-12 victory.

As they had all match, the Blue Hens played inspired ball at the beginning of the third set. Delaware got on the board quickly when setter Jess Chason made an impressive play, tracking down a tough carom well out-of-bounds and popping it back into play to continue the rally and eventually put the Hens up, 1-0.

Delaware held tough and entered the halfway point of the set only trailing by two at 12 10. Pepperdine immediately used a three-point swing to stretch its lead, and the Wave rally was only briefly halted when they sent the wrong server to the line, which resulted in a point for Delaware.

Trailing by four at 16-12, the Blue Hens eventually cut their deficit down to three but could not manage to pull any closer. Pepperdine seemed poised and ready to handle every Delaware attack, posting a 25-20 victory to capture the match.

Despite the loss to Pepperdine, Delaware held at least one lead in every set. Unable to hold onto their advantages, however, the Blue Hens fell to 0-5 all- time against teams from the West Coast Conference.

Jess Chason finished the match with 23 assists, while Steph Barry posted a match-high 22 digs. Meghan Bonk also added five kills and a block.

Elena DelleDonne, Bonk’s former high school teammate and the 2007-08 National Player of the Year in basketball, made her collegiate debut in the first match. Coming off the bench, she blasted a kill on her first attack attempt. She eventually finished the day with four kills and a block during the team’s two matches.

Pepperdine (2-0) was led by Julie Rubenstein, who posted 21 kills and eight digs. Stevi Robinson also chipped in with 18 digs, while Lilla Frederick added 11 more.

Following a mid-afternoon break in action, Delaware returned to the court against Greensboro but came up empty once again. During the match, the Spartans started quickly, reeling off four straight points after the Hens opened the set with a 1-0 lead.

The team’s eventually battled to 5-5 tie before Greensboro used a five-point run to grab a commanding 10-5 lead. Delaware could never quite fight its way back into the game, though, never pulling closer than four in a 25-15 setback.

The Blue Hens finally seemed to find their groove in the second set. With the game tied at four, Delaware went on a five-point run highlighted by an ace from Greta Gibboney and kills by Chason and Paige Erickson. After the Spartans broke the streak, Delaware came back with two more points to stretch their lead to 11-5 before Greensboro called a timeout.

The teams eventually traded short rallies before the Spartans pieced together a four-point run to knot the frame at 15 apiece. Still tied at 17, Greensboro went on a 5-1 run to grab a 22-18 lead. Despite chipping away at the deficit, Delaware could not complete the comeback, falling 25-22.

Following the intermission, the Spartans came out of the gate strong, posting a 7-3 advantage. They held their four-point lead until Delaware came fighting back with a rally that was capped by another kill off the right hand of Dennehy, which knotted the game at 14 apiece.

With the game still locked at 17, Greensboro utilized its last rally of the match to seal the victory. The Spartans eventually ran off three straight points and 8 of the final twelve to capture a 25-21 victory.

Chason chipped in with a match-high 23 assists against Greensboro, while Barry
led all players with 15 digs. Gibboney also notched 10 digs for the Hens, while
Michelle LaLonde posted three blocks.

Greensboro (1-2) was led by Branagan Fuller, who had 12 digs and 10 kills. Kimiko Naito also added 15 assists, while Lisa Fawell chipped in with 14 more.

For the second straight day, the Blue Hen faithful flocked to the Titan Gymnasium and helped eliminate any home-court advantage the California schools could claim. Against Fullerton, Delaware family, friends, and former players filled an entire section of the stands, and against Pepperdine and Greensboro, they boasted a larger and more vocal fan base than their opponents.

The Blue Hens hope to rebound with a change of scenery as they open up their home slate on September 5 at 7 p.m. with the start of the Delaware Invitational. The Hens host New Hampshire on Friday night before taking on Syracuse and Michigan State in a doubleheader on Saturday.