CHESTER, Pa. (Oct. 27, 2016) – The Widener University volleyball team fell to Arcadia in straight sets on Thursday evening at the Schwartz Center. Set scores were 25-20, 25-14 and 25-18.
 
Arcadia used a stellar service game to burst ahead in the first frame. Jump server Shannon Ryan helped the Knights start the evening by scoring five unanswered by providing two aces during the stretch and putting the Pride on the defensive in the other rallies. A kill by Makenna Micklus then made it 9-1. Widener attempted to rally and embarked on an 8-3 run to close the gap to 24-20, but a kill by Lizzie Joseph following a timeout gave the visitors the set victory.
 
The Knights also led from wire-to-wire in the second set and jumped out to a 7-2 advantage on another Joseph kill to prompt a Widener timeout. Sophomores Natalie Winn (San Marcos, Calif.) and Nicole Dorman (East Norriton, Pa.) went on the attack in an attempt to slice the deficit, but the Knights would pull away by most notably hitting .480 during the frame to take it by an 11-point margin.
 
Widener got off to a strong start in the third set and got an ace from senior Sabrina Barbieri (Glen Mills, Pa.) followed by a kill from sophomore Janie Kalinock (Ellicott City, Md.) to help build up a 4-1 lead. A Pride blocking error on the next rally, however, swung the momentum in the other direction and back to the Knights. Joseph smashed a kill to break a 5-5 deadlock and spark a 6-0 run, and the visitors would never trail the rest of the way.
 
Dorman paced the Pride by recording 14 kills and six digs in the setback. Barbieri added 22 assists, two aces and five digs, while senior Lauren Elliott (Aston, Pa.) contributed 10 digs defensively. Senior Kristin DeCicco and Kalinock each registered four blocks.
 
Arcadia (16-13, MAC Commonwealth 3-5) got 11 kills apiece from Ryan and Joseph. Ryan also contributed eight digs and three aces, while Emily Eng finished with a match-high 16 digs.
 
Prior to the match, seniors Brooke Ruditys (Upper Chichester, Pa.), Barbieri, DeCicco and Elliott were recognized for their contributions to the program.
 
Widener (12-17, MAC Commonwealth 4-4) still finished fourth in the league standings and will host fifth-seeded Lycoming in the play-in game of the Middle Atlantic Conference Commonwealth Tournament on Monday, Oct. 31 at 7:00 p.m. The winner will visit top-seeded Stevenson for a 7:00 p.m. semifinal match on Wednesday, Nov. 2.