Volleyball: Towson earns two wins at SECU

By: Jordan Cope, Assistant Sports Editor

Towson won two of its three matches this weekend, when they beat William & Mary and Elon, but fell to Delaware Wednesday.

Saturday, the Tigers defeated William & Mary 3-1. In set one, the Tigers defeated the Tribe 25-18.

Towson jumped out to an early 6-1 lead and had help from freshman Jocelyn Kulian, who recorded seven kills.

“It’s obviously important to win the first set, it kind of sets the tone,” Head Coach Don Metil said. “But we struggled through some inconsistencies. We struggled running the middle tonight because of our passing and they have a unique block which gives us trouble but we were able to settle down.”

In set two, Towson lost to William & Mary 25-16. The Tigers fell behind 13-4 after the Tribe went on an early 7-0 run. Towson never recovered and went into the promo tied 1-1.

“We honestly got on the team a little bit,” Metil said. “We rarely get on their case and yell at them, but tonight was a little bit different but they responded. Anytime you get on your team in a negative matter you don’t know how they are going to respond, but luckily they came out and responded.”

In set three the Tigers earned a 25-22 win and in set four a 25-15 win.

“I thought in the third set we were down at times and had to battle back,” Metil said. “We were still inconsistent and we still lacked energy, so we put some other people in the game to try to spark some energy and it seemed to work.”

On Friday, Towson defeated Elon 3-0.

“After Wednesday’s game against Delaware we addressed the team from a mental standpoint and told them that everyone prepares for you harder the second time around,” Metil said. “Tonight, we were able to get our middles involved, which was big.”

In set one, the Tigers defeated the Phoenix 25-13.

Towson and Elon were tied 4-4 early, but the Tigers went on a 5-0 run later in the set to take a 13-8 lead.

Although the Phoenix cut the Tigers lead to 13-10, Towson went on an 8-0 run to take a 21-10 lead before closing out the set.

In set two, Towson defeated Elon 25-19.

The Tigers and Phoenix were in a tight battle early, tied at 4-4.

However, as the set progressed Towson went on a pair of 3-0 runs and took a 14-9 lead.

Towson closed out the set and secured the win by winning five of the last 10 points.

In set three, the Tigers earned a 25-19 victory.

Towson and Elon were tied 8-8 early in the set, but a 5-0 run put the Tigers up 13-8. Towson later went on a 9-0 run to take a 21-10 lead before sweeping the Phoenix.

On Wednesday, Towson fell to Delaware despite leading the set 2-0.

In set one, the Tigers earned a 29-27 victory.

Delaware jumped out to an early 6-3 lead, however, Towson kept the game close and went on a late 4-0 run to take a 25-24 lead before closing out the set.

In set two, the Tigers and Blue Hens were tied 13-13 in the middle of the set.

However, Delaware later went on a 5-0 run and took a 20-17 lead.

Later in the set, Towson responded with a 5-0 run of its own to win set two 25-23.

Sets three, four and five weren’t as kind to Towson as the first two sets. In set three, the Tigers fell 25-23.

Delaware jumped out to an early 7-3 lead. Although Towson went on a late 5-0 run to trim the Blue Hen’s lead to just one point, Delaware held on for the win.

In set four, the Tigers took an early 7-4 lead, but the Blue Hens responded with a 6-0 run to take control of the game.

Delaware later went on another 6-0 run to close out the set and record a 25-18 victory.

In the decisive set five, Towson and Delaware were tied 5-5, but the Blue Hens went on a 6-0 run in the middle of the set to take an 11-5 lead.

While the Tigers responded with a 4-0 run, Delaware outlasted Towson down the stretch and recorded a 15-13 victory.

Next week, the Tigers will play in SECU Arena and take on College of Charleston and UNC Wilmington on Oct. 30.