The Malone University volleyball team opened the second day of the Ashland Invitational with a four-set victory over Nova Southeastern University (FL) in the first of two Saturday matches. In the nightcap, the Pioneers were swept by Shippensburg University (PA). Through four matches, Malone is now 2-2 on the season.
 
Malone 3, Nova Southeastern 1 (17-25, 25-19, 25-20, 25-21)
Playing just over 12 hours after Friday night's loss to Ashland, the Pioneers came out a little flat in the first set Saturday morning, falling behind 9-3 early on as the Sharks looked to be in control. That all changed in the second set, however, as the Pioneers used some momentum from three straight kills near the end of the first set to propel themselves to a four-set victory.
 
Malone never trailed in the second and then used 5-0 and 6-0 runs in the third to take a 2-1 lead. In the final set, in which they led from start to finish, the Pioneers opened a 20-9 lead before holding off a turbulent 10-0 Nova Southeastern run. A momentum-shifting kill by Brooklyn Sullivan finally ended the rally and an Abbie Swaino ace off the tape of the net eventually capped off the match.
 
The Malone defense was outstanding the victory, holding the Sharks to a .089 attacking percentage. In addition to their 70 digs, the Pioneers collected 15 blocks, their highest total in a match since posting 19 blocks in the 2016 G-MAC Quarterfinal victory over Kentucky Wesleyan.
 
Senior middle Mallory Adams recorded nine blocks (two solo) in the win, finishing one shy of tying a career-high. Hannah Eliason recorded six blocks, Veronica Gehring tallied five, and Rachel Santos added four. Maggie Hamrock led Malone in the backrow with 20 digs while Faith Lau equaled a career-high with 18. Sydney Black reached double-digits for the third-straight match, totaling 10 digs.
 
Adams was similarly impressive in the offensive attack, leading Malone with 12 kills on a .478 hitting percentage. Sullivan hit .429 on her way to a career-high seven kills. Gehring collected nine kills and Eliason chipped in with seven. Swaino tossed up a team-high three aces and 16 assists. Cathryn Miller added 15 helpers.
 
Denvyr Tyler-Palmer led Nova Southeastern with 16 kills; Megan Burns tallied a match-high 26 digs.
 
Malone 0, Shippensburg 3 (12-25, 21-25, 22-25)
Shippensburg, a team that qualified for the NCAA Tournament a season ago, roared out to an 8-0 lead to begin the match before cruising to the first-set victory. The Raiders hit .481 in the opening stanza while the Pioneers, coming off a nearly six-hour break between matches, struggled to find their footing.
 
Malone made some headway in the second set, taking an 18-13 lead during a 9-2 run that featured four straight kills by Mallory Adams. The Pioneers' five-point advantage evaporated, however, on a 7-0 run by the Raiders. Malone battled back to tie, but four straight points to end the frame put Shippensburg ahead two sets to none.
 
Neither team would lead by more than three points in the final set, which featured 11 ties and four lead changes. The Pioneers seemed to be on their way to forcing a fourth, leading 19-17, but a 5-0 run by the Raiders proved to be their undoing.
 
Mallory Adams, who recorded a .474 attacking percentage, finished with eight kills in the second set on her way to a team-high 12 for the match.  Faith Lau added a half-dozen kills while Abbie Swaino led Malone with 19 assists. Sydney Black added two aces in the service game.
 
Lau and Maggie Hamrock led the Pioneer defense with 13 digs each. After totaling 15 blocks in the opener, Malone managed just two blocks in the closer as Shippensburg hit .302 for the match.
 
Morgan DeFloria collected 14 kills and 10 digs to pace the Raiders.
 
Up Next
Malone will make its home debut next Friday and Saturday in the Hall of Fame City Challenge. The Pioneers open with Notre Dame College on Friday, August 31st at 10:00 am.