Oct. 4, 2008

Box Score

VILLANOVA, Pa. - Receiving contributions from the entire roster, the Villanova volleyball team blanked Fordham, 3-0 (25-18, 25-13, 25-19), on Saturday afternoon in Jake Nevin Fieldhouse.

Freshman Morgan Petkovich led the squad in kills connecting on 10 with no errors, for a hitting percentage of .385. Freshman Maggie Mergen and junior Amy Gulyas had seven and five kills respectively.

Junior Chelsea Graman dished out 18 assists for the Wildcats (10-7, 1-1), while freshman Courtney Oertli gave out 11, all in the third set.

Freshman Kim Maroon collected 11 digs, while Gulyas posted 10 on the defensive end.

After trailing, 11-6 in the first set, Villanova went on a 12-2 run, with three service aces from senior Dana Tartazky, and jumped in front to an 18-13 lead and forced Fordham into a timeout. The Wildcats would not trail again, as two kills from Tartazky gave VU a 25-18 victory.

Gulyas served the Wildcats to a 6-0 lead, also slamming three aces in the second frame. The Rams got on a the board and threatened the Wildcats, closing within two points, 9-7, but back-to-back kills from Mergen kept Villanova in front with an 18-9 advantage. Fordham scored just four more points in the second set as the Wildcats picked up the win after Fordham's attack error.

Senior Emily Brown served `Nova into a 5-0 advantage in the third stanza and a miscue from the Rams sent them into a timeout trailing, 10-5. Villanova extended its lead to 16-10 following the break, but the lead was cut to 18-14 after a kill from the Rams. Fordham scored two unanswered points to threaten the Wildcats at 21-17, but `Nova would not falter and won the match as back-to-back errors from Fordham ended the set.

The Wildcats combined to hit a .258 attack percentage, while holding the Rams to just .059. They also served 11 aces as a team.

Come help Villanova volleyball `Dig for the Cure' as the Wildcats are back on the court, Sunday at 2 p.m. to host Rutgers. For every dig that Villanova makes, donations will go to the Susan G. Komen Foundation of Philadelphia.