ASTON, Pa. - The Neumann University women's volleyball team took a pair of matches on Saturday as it hosted a tri-match with Rowan University (3-2) and Lebanon Valley College (3-0).

The Knights opened the day by battling to a 3-2 win over Rowan. Melanie Malseed and Ariana Pena each notched 14 kills in the match. Rachel Cray handed out 37 assists. Hayley Glah led four Knights in double-digit kills with 21. Malseed and Cray each added 17 while Bre Hickey tallied 16. Glah also had six service aces in the win.

Neumann jumped out quickly in the first set to a 6-3 lead. The Knights then scored the next 10 points, behind serves from Glah, for a 16-3 advantage. Two kills by Malseed and a service ace by Pena sealed the 25-10 first set win. 

The second set was the opposite of the first as the Profs scored the first five points and went on for the 16-3 lead. Rowan took set two 25-13. Rowan kept the foot on the gas and tallied the first seven points of set three. Neumann worked its way back to a 9-7 deficit, but the Profs answered by netting the next seven points for a 16-7 lead. Rowan would take set three 25-17.

In set four, the teams would stay neck and neck with each other. With the score knotted at 13, a kill by Maria Brown put Neumann up by one. A kill by Malseed increased the advantage to two., After a Prof attack error, Cray notched a service ace for a 17-13 Knights lead. Rowan battled back to within a pair, 20-18. The Knights then took advantage of some Rowan attack errors and on a kill by Pena, forced set five, 25-18.

The Knights used five straight kills to jump out to an 8-2 lead in the final set. A kill by Brown sealed the exciting 15-8 fifth set win and 3-2 match win.

Neumann followed with a 3-0 win over Lebanon Valley in the final match of the day. Malseed tallied 18 kills and 13 digs in the 3-0 win. Hickey and Pena each had 10 kills. Cray handed out 40 assists. Glah added 12 digs in the match. 

Over three sets, there were 29 tied scored and 12 lead changes. During the first set, the teams were within a couple points of one another down the stretch as the Knights held a 19-18 lead. A kill and service ace by Pena and then also by Cray put Neumann up 24-19. A kill by Malseed sealed the first set win 25-21. 

The second set was much like the first as the teams remained close. A service ace by Glah and a kill by Malseed brought Neumann to the set point. A Flying Dutchman attack error gave the Knights the 25-10 second set win. 

To no surprise, Lebanon Valley did not go without a fight in the third set. The Flying Dutchmen took a 23-21 lead late in the match. A kill by Grace Herbein brought the Knights to a one-point deficit. A Knights error put LVC at 24 points. As the match looked like it was going to a fourth set, a service ace by Alex Koppany and three kills by Pena sealed the 26-24 third set win and 3-0 match win. 

Neumann (8-9) will head to Widner next weekend for a tri-match with Wilkes in the final tune-up before conference play gets started. Action gets underway at 10:00 AM against the Pride.