VILLANOVA, Pa. – Villanova volleyball closed out its non-conference slate with a second sweep in a row, taking down Saint Francis in straight sets (25-23, 25-20, 25-14) at Jake Nevin Field House in the finale of the Villanova Classic.
Senior libero Taryn Whittingham and freshman outside hitter Marly Smith each earned All-Tournament honors at the Villanova Classic. Whittingham totaled 22 digs and two service aces on the weekend while Smith put up a career-high 11 kills on Friday and added six terminations in Saturday's finale.
"That's a really good end to our non-conference schedule, being 9-3 feels great," head coach Josh Steinbach said. "We've got a lot to work on, the road only gets tougher from here. We have maybe the hardest road trip of the year coming up, so we need to be on the top of our game. We'll have to continue to improve to make sure we're playing during the week of Thanksgiving."
Kiera Booth paced Villanova (9-3) with 10 kills and a pair of blocks, while Madeline Barber and Abby Harrell each totaled nine kills in the match. Andrea Campos led all players with 29 assists and Harrell, Whittingham and Skylar Gerhardt each contributed double-digit digs in the contest.
The Red Flash hopped out to an early advantage in the first set, leading 9-4 to begin the match. But Villanova fought right back, going on a 16-6 run to lead by four before Saint Francis used a 5-0 stretch of its own to make it a 21-20 stanza. But after a timeout by VU, the Wildcats took charge and stormed on to a 25-23 win to go up one set to none.
Villanova picked up a 5-1 edge to open the second period, but the Red Flash countered with a big stretch of points to go up 9-8. The 'Cats strung together 10 of the next 12 points to lead 18-11 and SFU once again responded with its own run, but the Wildcats outlasted them 25-20 en route to a two-set advantage.
It was another hot start in the third game for VU, picking up a 15-6 advantage to start it out fueled by six kills from Harrell in the frame. The Wildcats cruised to a victory in that set, allowing Ellery Gray, Ozzie Ozonoh and Annika Veurink to each put up a kill as the 'Cats swept Saint Francis.
Villanova moves to 2-0 all-time against the Red Flash and picks up its second straight three-set win of the year.
UP NEXT: The Wildcats now prepare for BIG EAST play, with the conference lidlifter coming on Friday night at Marquette before a Saturday bout in the Windy City against DePaul.
