Dover, Del. (Mar. 11, 2021) --- The Delaware State volleyball team had its best performance of the season, topping five-time defending MEAC champ Howard 3-0 at Burr Gym this evening. The scores were 25-7, 25-23 and 25-16.
The win snapped a string of 14 consecutive losses to Howard since the Hornets won two against the Bison in 2012 (3-0 and 3-2).
Mayah Ngundam (sr.) led a balanced Delaware State attack with nine kills, while Valeria Otero (fr.) tallied eight winners on 15 attacks (.400).
Jelena Dukic (sr.) led the Hornets with 18 assists and also contributed four digs to the win.  Jasmal Cruz (so.) had a team-high seven digs, while Kristi Gomez (fr.) recorded five of the Hornets' nine service aces in the match.  Gomez ranked third in the MEAC in service aces at 0.65 per set entering the match.
In the first set, the Hornets had 12 kills on 20 attacks for a .600 hitting percentage. Ngundam, Gomez, Otero and Sydney Lewis each had three kills in the set.
Delaware State trailed 1-0 in the first set before scoring the next eight points to open up a seven-point advantage. The Hornets opened up a double-digit lead, 13-3, on an error by the Bison.
DSU led 15-5 before another eight-point rally. Gomez capped off the spurt with a kill off a feed from Dukic to stretch the Hornets' lead to 23-5.
The 18-point margin of victory in the set was DSU's largest against a Division I foe since topping Norfolk State 30-9 in the first set of a 3-0 win against Norfolk State on Oct. 26, 2004.
The score was tied nine times in the second set, the last time at 13-13 on a kill by the Bison.
Delaware State responded by scoring the next seven points, and opened up a 20-13 lead on a kill by Erika Lindqvist. Howard scored 10 of the next 14 points to pull to within 24-23, but Ngundam ended the
Bison threat with a kill off a feed from Dukic for the set two win.
Ngundam had four kills in the third set to lead the way. The score was 3-3 in the set before the Hornets scored 12 of the next 16 points to take control. Lindqvist capped off the rally with a kill to give DSU a 15-7 lead.
The Hornets enjoyed their biggest lead in the final set, 22-13, on a kill by Gomez on a pass from Cruz.
Delaware State posted a .313 hitting percentage in the match, tallying 31 kills and just 10 errors on 67 attacks.
Howard recorded a .026 attack percentage in the contest, collecting 25 kills and 23 errors on 76 0attempts.
The Hornets had 10 total blocks to four for the Bison in the match.
Delaware State won for the fifth time in its last six contests to stand at 5-2 overall and 1-1 in the MEAC North. Howard dropped its fifth straight match to fall a 2-7 and 1-5.
The teams will meet again Fri. evening (Mar. 12) at Delaware State. The match is set for 6:00 p.m. in Memorial Hall.