Mountaineers Sweep Bearcats at Delaware Classic

Saturday, August 31

Newark, Del.

4:30 p.m.

West Virginia University

3-0

Binghamton

0-3

West Virginia

Binghamton

Photo by: Alex King

August 31, 2019 07:43 PM | Volleyball

Box Score Box Score Season Stats

By: Amy Salvatore

NEWARK, Del. – The West Virginia University volleyball team capped the 2019 Delaware Classic with a 3-0 sweep of Binghamton on Saturday afternoon at the Bob Carpenter Center in Newark, Delaware. The Mountaineers (3-0) downed the Bearcats (0-3) in set scores of 25-17, 25-20 and 25-21.

Following a 3-0 weekend at the two-day tournament, West Virginia walked away with the 2019 Delaware Classic title. Additionally, junior middle blocker Briana Lynch was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player, while sophomores Lacey Zerwas and Kristina Jordan earned all-tournament team honors for their efforts.

Sophomore outside hitter Kristin Lux registered a team-best 11 kills, hitting .286 in the win. Jordan had seven kills on 15 attacks, posting a .333 hitting efficiency. Zerwas assisted on 28 of the Mountaineers' 37 kills.

Junior defensive specialist Alexa Hasting led the floor defense with 15 digs, while junior middle blocker Audrey Adams and Lynch each had a pair of blocks.

WVU also served up a season-high four aces, with Jordan scoring two. West Virginia finished the match hitting .333 with four team blocks and 43 digs.

"I thought we were a little sloppy at times, but we rebounded," fifth-year coach Reed Sunahara said. "Overall, I thought we played well when it counted. We need to build off these wins and carry that momentum into next weekend at San Diego."

The first set started off with an ace from Zerwas, as the Mountaineers used a pair of 4-0 scoring runs for an 8-1 lead to start the frame. Both teams exchanged points down the stretch, as WVU capitalized on a pair of BU miscues, along with an ace from senior right-side hitter Erin Slinde, for the seven-point edge at 18-11. The Mountaineers later closed the set with four straight points, including a kill and an ace from Jordan, for the 25-17 victory and 1-0 match lead.

With the second set tied at 7-7, WVU capitalized on a pair of 3-0 scoring runs for the 14-9 advantage. The Bearcats did not back down though, clawing their way back into the frame with a 5-0 run of their own, down 18-15. West Virginia called a timeout to regroup, as Adams and Lux each came up with a huge swing out of the stoppage to extend the Mountaineers' lead back to five at 20-15. Binghamton hung around, scoring back-to-back service aces to trail by two before West Virginia secured four of the last five points for the 25-20 win and the 2-0 advantage.

West Virginia found itself in a 15-12 hole in set three before a kill from Lux and a pair of BU mishaps tied the set at 15-all. Both squads traded points down the stretch before three straight Binghamton errors gave West Virginia the 23-19 lead. A Bearcat kill cut their deficit to three, but it wasn't enough, as the Mountaineers cashed in on two more errors from BU for the 25-21 victory and the 3-0 sweep.

Looking ahead, the Mountaineers travel west to San Diego for a three-day tournament at San Diego State, from Sept. 5-7. West Virginia will face Arkansas on Sept. 5, San Diego State on Sept. 6 and Arizona on Sept. 7.

For more information on the Mountaineers, visit WVUsports.com and follow WVUVolleyball on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.