FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. - The Malone University volleyball team dropped their final match of the Shark Invitational at Nova Southeastern University 3-1 against D'Youville University on Saturday morning. The Pioneers return home to Canton 0-3 and the Saints improve their record to 1-1.
 
Helaina Edgar began the match on the right foot with a pair of aces and that momentum carried the team throughout the first set. D'Youville went on a slight scoring run to go up 8-4, but 21 of the final 23 points of the first belonged to Malone. The Pioneers seized control and scored the final nine points of the set in a 25-10 set win. Annabelle Kegley had four aces and Arianna Buckley tallied three kills in that span.
 
The teams traded the lead back-and-forth in the second set but efficiency from D'Youville allowed them to sneak away with the 25-22 win to even the match at 1-1. The Saints had 12 kills and just three errors in the second. Brianne Salinas had three kills for the Pioneers in the set.
 
D'Youville appeared as though they would take the third set handily, but a massive comeback by Malone put fear in their hearts. The Saints led 23-15 before the Pioneers rattled off seven in a row with a pair of kills by Jaymes Gilbert. D'Youville clung to the one-point lead and eventually put set three to bed with a 25-22 final result. The Pioneers had their best hitting set of the match in the third at .237 (14 kills, 5 errors).
 
The opponents retaliated with their best offensive work of the match in the fourth set to seal the victory, 25-19. A joint block by Salinas and Gilbert tied the score up at 12, but the Saints did not look back after a 5-0 scoring run.
 
Buckley and Gilbert were in double figures with 11 kills each while Tori Dawson was just behind with seven. Mikayla Yockey distributed a team-high 20 assists on 38 total assists. Kegley's four aces led the Malone squad who ended the match with 12.
 
Jaclyn Jundzilo led a balanced back row defense with seven digs. Gilbert had five block assists as well for a team-high 15.5 points. The Pioneers had nine blocks compared to the Saints' six.
 
Malone will host the 2025 Hall of Fame City Challenge starting on Friday, September 12 with a match versus Slippery Rock University at 10:00 A.M.