NEWARK, Del. – The Villanova Wildcats picked up a big road win on Friday evening, sweeping the previously undefeated Delaware Blue Hens in straight sets (25-19, 25-19, 25-16) at the Bob Carpenter Center.
Skylar Gerhardt contributed a match-high 14 kills for Villanova (6-2) and Andrea Campos totaled 32 assists for the most among match participants. Abby Harrell put forth 11 kills on a .444 hitting percentage along with two service aces, three blocks and five digs while Kiera Booth added 11 kills and three blocks of her own.
"That was a pretty complete performance from us, I thought we played really well all the way around," head coach Josh Steinbach said. "Our defense had a strong showing, we really overwhelmed their attackers. It's good to get a win on the road against a good team."
Delaware jumped out to an early edge in the first set, going up 5-0 before a Villanova timeout stopped the momentum. The 'Cats fought all the way back to tie it at 14-14 and from there, VU utilized an 8-0 stretch with Elizabeth Feczko at the service line and used that lead to sustain a late Blue Hen run for a six-point win.
After the teams traded points for a while to start the second frame, it was a 4-0 UD stretch to create some separation in the game. But the Wildcats returned the favor, using a 7-0 run of their own to go up 18-15. Villanova closed the period with seven of the final nine points to take an advantage of two sets to none.
Neither squad could establish an edge early in the third stanza as the score remained locked at 8-8. But the 'Cats utilized an 11-2 stretch to gain an eight-point advantage in the period, then finished off the Blue Hens with an Abby Keevins service ace to close out the sweep.
The victory delivers a six-match winning streak over Delaware and a 25-20 edge in the all-time series for the Wildcats, with the last loss coming all the way back in 2012.
UP NEXT: Villanova will remain in the state of Delaware for another day, preparing to match up against the Rider Broncs on Saturday at 3 p.m. from the Bob Carpenter Center.
