Box Score
The Fairleigh Dickinson women's volleyball team earned a hard-fought 3-2 win over the Rider Broncs Wednesday night in the Knights' home opener at Stratis Arena.
It was the second time the Knights beat the in-state rival Broncs this season as they improve their record to 9-3, while Rider falls to 3-11.
In the opening set, the Knights jumped out to an early advantage and took a 10-5 lead when Lawryn Fowler (Gaithersburg, MD/Our Lady of Good Counsel) and Meghan Alger (Cheltenham, MD/Bishop McNamara) combined on a block. Later in the set, one of Fowler's four kills made it 15-12 in favor of the Knights.
FDU stretched its lead to as many as six at 24-18 before a Meaghan Wheeler (Chatsworth, CA/Chaminade College Prep) kill gave the Knights a 25-20 win and 1-0 advantage. Wheeler recorded a team-best 16 kills and added 14 digs for her seventh double-double of the season.
In set two, the Broncs came alive with eight of the game's first ten points before the Knights called a timeout to try to slow down the momentum.
The Broncs were able to extend their lead to 15-8. The road team's advantage ballooned to 19-9 before FDU had to use another timeout to stop the run.
This time it worked as the Knights came back with three straight points to make it 19-12. It was not enough, however, as the Broncs were able to finish out the set with a 25-17 victory to tie things up at one.
The Broncs kept things tight in the third set with three ties in the first 10 points. With the score even at five, FDU went on a 5-0 run to take a 10-5 lead.
Chelsea Braga (Long Beach, NY/Long Beach ) had three of her eight kills of the match in the third set, including one to make it 12-6 in favor of the home team.
With the Knights holding on to a 17-9 lead, Kelsey Semler (Allentown, PA/Allentown Central Catholic) regained the serve and reeled off five-straight points, two courtesy of service aces. The Broncs would get to within nine at 24-15, but the Knights were able to put the set away with an Alger kill for a 25-15 final and 2-1 lead.
Early in the fourth set, the Knights appeared on the right track to picking up the win with a 4-1 lead. The Broncs were able to mount a comeback and tie the score at 8-8. Rider then scored 11 of the set's next 13 points for a 19-10 lead and went on to a 25-15 win to force a fifth set.
The Knights quickly gained the upper hand in the decisive set with a 5-1 advantage. Wheeler crushed five kills in the fifth, and Taylor Roland-Buohl (Lancaster, Pa./Lampeter-Strasburg) chipped in with two more to help FDU to a 15-8 win to take the set and a 3-2 win.
In the three sets the Knights won, they were able to win the battle at the net with hitting percentages of .300 or better. In the two that they lost, however, FDU hit .071 and .103.
Semler led the Knights' defense with 25 digs, while Sarah Willey (Abingdon, MD/Bel Air) had 26 assists on offense.
Next up for the Knights is their NEC opener, a showdown at Sacred Heart on Saturday, Sept. 24. First-serve is scheduled for 6 p.m.
