Box Score CENTER VALLEY, Pa. - The Neumann University volleyball team battled to a 3-2 win at DeSales University on Wednesday evening in the first round of the ECAC Southeast Tournament.
Neumann was the No. 5 seed in the seven team Tournament. DeSales was the No. 4 seed. All action now heads to No. 1 seeded Lebanon Valley for the rest of the tournament action on Saturday.
Each set was a battle. The Bulldogs won the first set 25-18. The Knights then took sets two and three, both by a score of 25-20. DeSales came back in set four 25-21 to force a fifth set where Neumann clinched the match, 15-11.
Kelsey D'Imperio and Anna Waltz each had 18 kills for the Knights. Amanda McAleer added 17 kills. Kat Wolf handed out 53 assists.
Julia Malseed anchored the defense with 26 digs. Waltz added 24, Elaina Shooster 13 and Danielle Kwapisz had 12. D'Imperio had three block solos and four block assists.
After being down after the first set, the Knights came out strong in set two and jumped out to a 20-10 lead. The Bulldogs started to chip their way back into the set and for to within two, 20-18. Two kills by McAleer sealed the set and pulled the teams even.
The third set was back and forth. McAleer notched a kill for the 24th point and the D'Imperio jumped for a block solo for the 25th point and a 2-1 lead.
DeSales came hard in the fourth set and held a 15-5 advantage and held on to tie the match at 2-2.
The teams traded points to start the fifth set and were tied at eight. With Waltz serving, the Knights were able to take an 11-8 lead. Neumann was then up to 14 points, thanks to a kill by McAleer and a few Bulldog errors. DeSales took a timeout with the score 14-9 and then notched two kills for a 14-11 score. McAleer sealed the win for the Knights with a kill.
Neumann (23-12) will face Lebanon Valley in the semifinals on Saturday at either 10:00 AM or 1:00 PM. The championship and consolation matches will take place Saturday evening.
