CHESTER, PA – The Wilkes University Colonels women's volleyball squad traveled to face Widener and Salisbury Saturday afternoon.
 
The Colonels (8-13) dropped a 3-1 (14-25, 25-22, 20-25, 13-25) match against Widener (14-6) before being swept by Salisbury 3-0 (14-25, 14-25, 11-25)
 
After dropping the first set against the Pride and being down 10-4 in the second, the Colonels battled back.  A 6-1 mid-set run gave them a 14-13 edge, but the Pride responded in kind soon after to take a 19-16 lead.  A 9-3 Colonel run shut the door on the Pride in the second set.  The Colonels found themselves in a 7-2 hole to start the third set, but clawed back within one after a 5-2 run to sit within striking distance 10-11.  The squads traded runs back and forth, but Widener found the late set burst to seal the third set in their favor, a 9-4 run to shut the door on the Colonels. 
 
The Colonels would drop the fourth set 25-13 and the match, and fared little better against Salisbury as they didn't record more than 14 points in any given set and only had positive hitting percentage in one set.
 
First year setter Alexa Cassel (Hummelstown, PA/Lower Dauphin) ran the Colonels offense, recording 22 assists against Widener and 13 against Salisbury.  First year outside hitter Alexis reedy had 12 kills versus Widener.  For Widener, Liliyanna Martucci had 17 kills and Alnisha Saintilus 12, while Megan Barthol had 25 assists and Sydney Nichols 19.
 
Three Salisbury players recorded double digit kills, with Jenna Feinauer having five blocks and 11 kills for Salisbury.  Darian DMatteo had 22 digs for Salisbury on the day.
 
The Colonels travel crosstown on Tuesday night to face King's College at 7:00 p.m. in a conference showdown.  The Colonels are 7-6 in the live stats era against King's, losing the 2019 affair on the road 3-0.