File Photo Courtesy of Mark Campbell

Boxscore

NEWARK, Del. - Despite a six-point lead late in the fifth set, the University of Delaware volleyball team could not hang on as the Hens watched Towson claw back into the game before posting a 3-2 (25-15, 17-25, 25-20, 22-25, 12-15) victory in their Colonial Athletic Association bout at Viera Court on Friday night.

Leading by six at 10-4 in the fifth set, the Blue Hens (7-13, 2-3 CAA) could only muster two more points in the match as Towson (14-6, 3-2) won 11 of the last 13 rallies to pull out the improbable come-from-behind victory.

Maddie Haseltine and Britney Loomis both posted double-doubles to lead the Tiger attack. Haseltine had 17 digs and 15 kills, while Loomis posted 17 kills and 16 digs.

Jess Chason (at right) had a strong day for Delaware, falling just three kills short of a triple-double. The sophomore setter posted 42 assists, 15 digs, and seven kills without a single error. She also chipped in with three blocks to round out her day.

In the fateful fifth set, freshman Kim Stewart carried the team from the start. After posting an early kill, she stepped to the line and blasted three aces in the span of four points before topping off the run with another kill to put Delaware up 10-4.

Then Towson came roaring back.

The Tigers won two straight points and six of the next seven to pull within one at 11-10. Following a Delaware timeout, the Hens extended their lead to two following a block by Elena Delle Donne and Kim Stewart. Unfortunately, that was the last rally Delaware would win.

Towson captured the last five points, including two on kills by Britney Loomis, to post the 15-12 victory and walk away with the 3-2 conference win.

The loss marked the third straight home match the Blue Hens have dropped to a conference opponent. Last week, the team also fell to Virginia Commonwealth and William & Mary. The team had not lost three straight CAA bouts at home since 2006.

Although the ending was bitter for the Blue Hens, the team looked strong in the beginning of the match. The team opened up the contest with a 12-6 run that featured two kills, a block, and an ace from Paige Erickson. Eventually, Delaware’s star middle hitter added another solo block in the set, while Meghan Bonk blasted three late kills, including the clincher, to lead the team to a 25-15 victory.

Despite a wave of momentum in Delaware’s favor, Towson turned around the tide and broke away with a 16-11 lead in the second set before the Hens called a timeout. Following the break, Bonk smashed a kill and Towson was called for a ball-handling error to pull Delaware back within three. The Tigers had an answer, though, running off four straight points to grab a 20-13 lead before another Blue Hen timeout.

Although Bonk notched another kill immediately following the break, the deficit was too large to overcome as Towson eventually won the last three points of the set to pick up the 25-17 victory.

The seesaw battle continued as Delaware came out fast in the third frame, using three kills by Dennehy and two from Delle Donne to earn a 14-8 advantage. Towson came back as the team capitalized on three Blue Hen miscues and an ace from Britney Loomis to knot the set at 16.

Unwilling to let the Tigers take the lead, Dennehy and Delle Donne posted back-to-back kills before a Towson error gave Delaware a 19-16 lead. Although the visitors answered with their own three-point roll, the Hens were undeterred. Behind an ace from Greta Gibboney and kills by Erickson, Chason, Stewart, and Dennehy, Delaware eased into a 25-20 win.

Gibboney continued her phenomenal work at the line in the fourth frame, firing three straight aces in the early part of the set to help the Hens grab a 13-6 lead. Down by seven, Towson was unfazed by the deficit. Following four straight Tiger points, Delaware called a timeout still leading by three at 13-10.

The break only momentarily helped before Maddie Haseltine fired three quick kills that put Towson up by one at 16-15. Later, Erickson’s third solo block of the contest helped Delaware retie the set at 18 apiece before back-to-back blasts from Erickson and Dennehy gave the team a lead at 21-20.

Unfortunately, three rallies later, Towson held a 23-21 advantage. Another kill by Dennehy pulled Delaware back within one, but the Tigers got a block from Haseltine and Alysha Fanning to grab set-point before a kill by Britney Loomis sealed the set at 25-22.

Fanning finished the match with nine kills and eight blocks for Towson, while Katee Luecke had 42 assists and 20 digs.

Dennehy led Delaware with 15 kills and picked up her fifth double-double after also posting 10 digs. Erickson also had 12 kills, five blocks, and two aces, while Bonk had her second-straight double-digit kill performance after recording 10 against the Tigers.

Gibboney also tied her career-high with five aces, while Kim Stewart fired four more.

Delaware will return to action next Wednesday when the team hosts Main Line rival Villanova at 7 p.m.