NORFOLK, Va. – Delaware State jumped out to a 2-0 lead and then held off the Spartans in a 3-1 victory over the Norfolk State volleyball team on Thursday afternoon in a non-conference match at Joseph Echols Hall.
 
The Hornets took the first two sets 25-20 and 25-17, but NSU had an answer after the five-minute intermission. The Spartans stormed back to take the third set, 25-19, and the Hornets broke a 21-all tie in the fourth to finish off the match, 25-21.
 
Senior Rachel Williams led NSU with 10 kills as the Spartans fell to 1-2 on the season. Junior Paola Maradei added six kills and four blocks, and NSU finished the match with an 8-3 advantage in blocks.
 
DSU hit .192 in improving its record to 2-1. Valeria Otero had a match-high 14 kills with 10 digs, and Mayah Ngundam totaled 11 kills.
 
Delaware State grabbed the early lead in the match despite facing a four-point hole, 9-5, early in the first set thanks in part to three kills from Maradei. The Hornets scored five in a row to take the lead back, and they slowly stretched the lead to six in the latter portion before Otero finished it off.
 
The Spartans scored six in a row in the second set after falling into an 11-2 hole. But after getting to within three at that point, they could get no closer. DSU scored five of the next six points and later stretched the lead to eight. Freshman Jaida Bynum one of her six service aces as NSU was able to get to within 22-17 late in the set.
 
She also had three during a 9-0 run for the Spartans that essentially gave them the third set. NSU was up 12-2 at that point, and the hold was too much for DSU to overcome. The Hornets were able to cut the deficit to four at 19-15, but Maradei and senior Jannel Ezeagwu each had kills to help keep the team's hopes alive.
 
DSU did not have an easy time in the fourth set. Three different Spartans had kills for an early 5-4 lead, but the Hornets scored five of the next six points for a 9-6 advantage. NSU rallied with a pair of kills from Williams during a 6-1 run for a 14-12 lead. The Spartans had to call timeout after Delaware State started to pull ahead, 21-17.
 
Four straight DSU errors tied the score at 21-21, but NSU committed three straight errors right after that to allow the Hornets to finish off the match.
 
Ezeagwu had five kills and three blocks, while junior Nicole Rodriguez led all players with 16 digs.
 
The two teams will complete the home-and-home on Monday at 4 p.m. at DSU's Memorial Hall.