WILMINGTON, North Carolina – Led by a match-high 16 kills from Junior Christi Laite, UNCW rolled to a 3-0 (25-12, 25-19, 25-14) sweep of Delaware State in collegiate volleyball action in the Courtyard Wilmington Beach Bash Saturday at Hanover Hall.
The Seahawks suffered their first loss of the season in the nightcap, falling to tournament champion LIU Brooklyn, 3-1 (25-17, 19-25, 25-17, 25-20).
UNCW finished the season-openning tournament with a 2-1 record. UNCW concludes its season-opening homestand Tuesday when it entertains state rival Campbell in a 7 p.m. match.
Against Delaware State, Laite posted a match-high 16 kills and committed just three errors in 21 total attempts for a .619 hitting percentage to highlight a UNCW attack that finished the match with 47 kills and an impressive .372 attack percentage. Senior Jennifer Mallard notched with nine spikes and sophomore Sarah Fitzgerald tallied seven. Freshman Victoria Phillips handed out a match-best 23 assists in her collegiate debut while senior Natalie LaHaie chipped in 12. Defensively, junior Haley Collins posted a match-high 15 digs while Phillips added seven.
Junior Jessica Russell-Croucher and sophomore Edarkis Branch tallied five kills apiece for Delaware State, who was limited to just 14 spikes and a .028 hitting percentage for the contest.
UNCW never trailed in the first set, jumping out to an early 10-3 lead before closing the frame on a 9-2 run to post a 25-12 triumph. UNCW finished the opening set with 16 kills and just two attack errors in 26 total attempts as it combined for a .538 attack clip in the frame.
In the second set, UNCW held an 11-10 lead midway through the frame when a Delaware State service error sparked the Seahawks to an 7-3 spurt and an 18-13 advantage. The Hornets responded with three straight points to pull within two, 18-16, but a Delaware State service error, one of four in the frame, sparked the Seahawks to score six of the next nine points and take a 25-19 decision in the second frame.
The third set saw UNCW score 14 of the first 15 points of the frame to build a commanding 14-1 cushion. The Seahawks maintained a double-figure league the rest of the frame, using a kill from Laite to close out the match with a 25-14 victory. Laite was a perfect 8-for-8 on the attack in the third set to guide a UNCW lineup that posted 18 kills with just three attack errors in 27 total attempts for a .556 attack percentage in the frame.
