Blue Hens Sweep Hawks, 3-0

Saturday, September 4

Newark, Del.

5 PM

University of Delaware

Maryland Eastern Shore

Photo by: Mark Campbell

9/4/2021 7:11:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score

NEWARK, Del. – Three sets was all it took as the Delaware volleyball team bested Maryland Eastern Shore, 3-0, to close out the Delaware Invitational on Saturday night.

The Blue Hens (5-1) concluded the two-day invitational without dropping a single set in the three total matches. It marks the longest set win streak since Delaware won 12 in a row during a four-match win streak from Aug. 31 – Sept. 6.

"It was a great weekend for us," head coach Sara Matthews said. "We were trying to work on some things on our side of the net and I felt like we made some progress in those areas. We served really tough which was good to see and I'm looking forward to a great week of practice and a highly competitive weekend."

Lani Mason, who was named the tournament MVP, held a .333 attack percentage with seven kills on 15 attacks against the Hawks (2-4). She added a career-high six service aces and six digs to her stat line. Savannah Seemans also tallied six kills on the night, while recording a career-best seven aces.

Grace Underwood had an efficient scoring night, notching five kills on eight attacks. The senior additionally logged three of the Blue Hens' 14 blocks. Lauryn Richardson and Kirah Johnson combined for 10 kills and seven blocks en route to being named to the all-tournament team.

On the defensive end, Katie Turner posted a match-best eight digs, while Ezgi Basaranlar recorded seven to pair with her match-high 19 assists.

SET ONE
Delaware trailed 6-5 before a kill by Mason sparked a 9-0 run. UMES countered with a 5-0 run to trim the deficit to three, 14-11, before the two sides began to go back and forth. Despite the Hawks pulling within three, 19-16, a 6-2 Delaware run capped by a Mason kill sealed the 25-18 set victory.

SET TWO
With Seemans serving to open the set, the Blue Hens poured in 13 straight points to grab the early advantage. The Hawks finally scored in the set off a service error, but Delaware bounced right back with four unanswered to go ahead 17-1. The deficit was too much for the Hawks to overcome as the Blue Hens took the 25-10 set two win.

SET THREE
Three aces by Mason early in the third set gave Delaware a 9-5 edge. UMES came within two, 10-8, before the Blue Hens went on a 5-1 run to extend their advantage. Delaware held onto its lead and eventually secured the 25-16 set victory.

ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Lani Mason - Delaware (MVP)
Kirah Johnson - Delaware
Lauryn Richardson - Delaware
Whitley Moody - Fordham
Mallory Lipski - Fordham
Jalynn Robinson - Maryland Eastern Shore
Adriana Goetz-Morales - NJIT

UP NEXT
Delaware returns to action on Thursday when the Blue Hens trek to Lawrence, Kan., to compete in the three-day Kansas Invitational. The Blue Hens will open play against host Kansas on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. ET.