Blue Hens win Ninth Straight, Defeat Second Place VCU, 3-0
November 5, 2010
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Photos Courtesy of Mark Campbell
• Boxscore
RICHMOND, Va. - - The University of Delaware volleyball team played its fourth straight Colonial Athletic Association playoff contender, easily dispatching Virginia Commonwealth University, 3-0, in the Verizon Wireless Arena at the Stuart C. Siegel Center, Friday night. Set scores for the match were 25-16, 25-15, and 25-22.
Junior Kim Stewart (at right) led Delaware (21-5, 10-1 CAA) with her 10th double-double of the season, recording a match high 11 kills, adding 10 digs. Greta Gibboney posted 26 digs while Jess Chason contributed 36 assists in the straight set victory. Katie Dennehy and Alissa Alker also posted double figure kills with 10 each.
Courtney Hott led VCU (10-18, 8-4 CAA) offensively with 10 kills and hit .429 for the night. Ciara Brown has 16 assists for the Rams while Marisa Low tallied 14 digs to lead the team defensively.
The first set was a game of spurts for the Blue Hens, as they darted out to a quick 3-0 lead before the Rams got on the scoreboard. Delaware then used a streak of six straight points with kills by Stewart and Paige Erickson, to extend the lead to 10-3. Another three-point stretch, led by a service ace by Dennehy, saw the Blue Hens take an 18-10 lead before finishing off the Rams 25-16.
Game two had two great streaks for the Blue Hens, which helped them cruise to another set victory. A kill by Chason sparked a five-point turnaround for the Hens and ended with a service ace by Stewart, giving Delaware an 11-6 lead. Another four-point stretch with kills from Alker, Stewart and Erickson, extended the lead to 19-11. Delaware took six of the next ten points to take the set, 25-15.
The third set was the closest of the night, as the Blue Hens had to battle back from a late hole, before taking the match in straight sets. Trailing through a majority of the frame, the Hens found their rhythm trailing 22-21. The four-point rally started with a kill by Stewart, and ended with kills from Dennehy and Erickson, the latter ending the set and the match, 25-22.
With the win, the Blue Hens can clinch the CAA Regular Season Championship and the right to host the CAA Tournament with a victory over William & Mary on Saturday.
The game against the Tribe will be begin at 7 p.m.
AGATE:
Delaware def. VCU, 3-0 (25-16, 25-15, 25-22)
Delaware (kills-assists-digs): Erickson (8-0-0), Stewart (11-0-10), Dennehy (10-0-7), Chason (1-36-7), Alker (10-2-7), Evans (2-0-0), Gibboney (0-1-26), Lawrence (0-0-0).
VCU: Brown (1-16-6), Frey (7-1-1), Waters (3-0-0), Clegg (3-0-1), Ojukwu (2-0-4), Boyd (6-0-0), Salvi (0-0-2), Low (0-5-14), Hott (10-0-0), Farkas (1-0-0), Warner (0-0-9), Camacho (0-7-6) Total Team Blocks: Delaware – 9.0, VCU – 5.0
