PHILADELPHIA, Pa. - FDU women's volleyball opened their season earlier today with a thrilling match against Radford to kick off the weekend at Temple's Cherry and White Invitational. The Knights debuted with a gritty performance to best the Highlanders 3-2.
Offense was the name of the game for set one, as both teams tallied over 30 attempts in the first 25 points. Despite an early 11-7 lead, the Burgundy and Blue were not able to hold off a hot hitting Highlander team. With 19 kills and just one error, Radford hit an impressive .500 on the set. Two services aces from Senior
Emily Van O'Linda brought the Knights back to even with the Highlanders, but the effort was not enough as FDU lost set one 23-25.
Set two proved to be another tight race as the teams went back and forth for the first six points. A service error by Radford sparked energy in the Burgundy and Blue that didn't let up for the rest of the set as the Knights cruised to a 25-23 victory. Graduate Student
Eleonora Tosi proved to be a force as she tallied 6 kills in the set.
Not going down easily, the Highlanders came out with fire as they jumped to an early 8-3 lead. Impressive defense from Van O'Linda was not enough to keep the Knights within fighting distance. Struggling offensively and defensively, the burgundy and blue got six of their 22 points from Radford's attacking errors alone. A late push sparked by two kills from Junior
MacKenzy Ruggiero wasn't enough for the Knights as Radford took set three 25-22.
Set four was all grit as neither team would allow more of a lead than three points. With 19 kills and seven errors, the Highlanders barely outhit FDU with a percentage of .222, despite losing the set 25-27. Sophomore
Avery Bain led the Knights with four kills and only one error for a hitting clip of .214.
The Burgundy and Blue used their momentum to power ahead in set five, taking the match with a 15-12 win.
The Knights were led by Tosi who totaled an impressive 21 kills on only five errors for a clip of .410. Van O'Linda tallied a career high 27 digs and four aces while Senior
Hannah Schmidt totaled 34 assists.
The Knights will return to action in the Cherry and White invitational tomorrow (08/31) as they take on Temple and Rider at 1:00 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. The first match against home team Temple will be streamed on ESPN+.
