NORFOLK, Va. - After being down, 2-0, at Norfolk State University, the Delaware State University volleyball team rallied to win the next two to force a game five Friday evening. The Hornets, however, couldn't complete the comeback and lost 3-2 to the Spartans at Joseph Echols Hall.
Del State (3-13; 2-3 MEAC) hit a paltry .023 on the night, including two sets of hitting a negative percentage, compared to Norfolk State's .145. Junior Laisha Davis (Riviera Beach, Fla.) led the team with her .222 hitting (seven kills/six errors/23 total attacks). Sophomore Jessica Croucher (Brisbane, Australia) and freshman Edarkis Branch (Los Angeles, Calif.) posted team-highs of seven kills in the match.
Davis also led the team with five block assists, contributing to the team's game-high of 10 on the night. Senior Sonja Banicevic (Zagreb, Croatia) collected a match-high 18 digs in the contest while junior Bel Fakaosi (Salt Lake City, Utah) had 25 assists.
The Hornets fell in the first set, 25-19, but were close the entire game. Consecutive kills from Branch and Croucher pulled Del State within 23-18, but the Spartans (6-10; 2-2 MEAC) closed out on a kill from Beatriz Ferreira.
DSU couldn't find their bearings in the second set as they were routed, 25-10. The set included separate runs of 7-0 and 5-0 in favor of Norfolk State.
The Hornets regained their composure in the third set and battled point by point to win, 26-24. The set saw nine digs from Banicevic and three kills from freshman Theresa Schieder (Munich, Germany).
Kills from Davis and Croucher gave Del State control of the fourth set and forced NSU to take a timeout with DSU leading, 12-8. The Spartans pulled within one at 13-12, but the Hornets went on a 4-0 run including a kill from Fakaosi to take a 17-12 lead. Norfolk State tied things at 22-22 but two Spartan errors and a kill from Croucher sealed the game for the Hornets at 25-23 to force a fifth set.
NSU jumped out to a quick 6-2 lead in set five and Del State was never able to recover from the deficit. The Hornets came within one at 8-7 from a Croucher kill and scored their remaining points on NSU errors. The Spartans won the set, 15-12, to win the match.
Del State continues their road trip to the Hampton Roads area as they visit Hampton University on Sunday.
---DSU VB---
