10/8/22
 
SCRANTON, Pa. – The Lackawanna College women's volleyball squad will play two matches in one day on Saturday, October 8^th, when the Falcons travel to Newark, DE to play Delaware Tech CC and Cecil College in a tri-match at Delaware Tech CC.  
 
The first match, where Lackawanna takes on the hosts from Delaware Tech CC, will be at 11:00am ET, and the second match, against Cecil College, will follow at 1:00pm ET. Both matches will have a video livestream available on the Delaware Tech CC YouTube Channel HERE.
 
The Falcons met the Terry Hawks earlier this season, when Delaware Tech came to Scranton and blanked Lackawanna, 3-0 (25-16, 25-12, 25-16), in a sweep back on September 10^th. You can read the recap from that match HERE.
 
About The Falcons
Lackawanna College (2-8) comes into the contest after dropping a road contest at Northampton CC, 3-0 (25-8, 25-8, 25-18). The Spartans were impressive throughout, motoring past the Falcons early and never looking back. You can read the recap from that match HERE.
 
The Falcons have steadily improved their hitting percentage as the season has gone on, now amassing 160 kills to over 140 errors on the year. They average around 5.6 kills per set. Falcon opponents are averaging around .204 in hitting percentage, and score just shy of 9 kills per set. The Falcons have 68 service aces on the season, averaging 2.4 per set, and have 414 digs on the season, a 15.3 digs per set clip.
 
Hunter Heeman (New Milford, PA) has a team-best 72 kills so far this season, and has hit double-digits in kills in four of her last six matches. Heeman has had six or more kills in seven of her ten matches this year. Heeman also has hit double-digit digs in five matches this year. Heeman had ten kills on 30 attacks against Montco, providing six digs and a solo block. She had three kills and six digs in the loss to Northampton on Thursday. Against Del Tech earlier this year, Heeman had eight kills on 32 attacks, while setting a season-high with 18 digs.
 
Makayla Jones (Weatherford, TX) is second on the team with 31 kills on the season. Jones set a season-high for kills last week, her second straight match doing so, when she went for seven kills against Harcum College. She has also hit double-figures in digs in five of her last eight matches this season. Jones had three kills on 24 attacks against Montco on Tuesday, providing a season-high four assists and 18 digs for the Falcons. She had seven digs and a kill against Northampton CC on Thursday. Against Del Tech earlier this season, Jones had two kills on 16 attacks and seven digs.  
 
Melanie Pinillos (Miami, FL) is fourth on the team with 15 kills this year, and leads the team with 18 service aces this season. As Pinillos has settled more into her role as libero, her kills have gone down, but her digs have shot up, hitting double-figures in six matches this season, crossing the 20-dig barrier twice. Pinillos had a season-high seven kills in the opener against Lehigh Carbon. Pinillos had a service ace and ten digs in the loss to Montco on Tuesday. Pinillos had seven digs and a kill in the loss to Northampton CC on Thursday. She had two kills on 13 attacks and had a season-best 24 digs in the loss to Delaware Tech earlier this season.  
 
Delaney Hollenbeck (Kingsley, PA) has 19 kills so far this season, third on the team, and is second on the team with 12 service aces this year. Hollenbeck leads the Falcons with 93 assists this season, crossing double-figures in five matches this season, including four of her last five appearances. Hollenbeck has hit her season-best with 19 assists in the win at Lehigh Carbon. Hollenbeck was productive against Montco, putting up four kills on eleven attempts, while dishing out 15 assists. Hollenbeck had seven assists and a service ace against Northampton CC on Thursday. She had seven assists and four digs in the loss to Delaware Tech earlier this season.   
 
The head coach for the Falcons is Shelby Morgan, in her first season at the helm. Morgan previously spent seven seasons as the head coach at Cedar Crest College, where she helped transform the Falcons from a conference basement dweller into a perennial threat, culminating in an NCAA tournament appearance in 2021.
 
About The Opponents
The first opponent on the day will be the hosts, Delaware Tech CC. The Terry Hawks (5-7) enter the contest fresh off a grueling five-set match with Harcum on Thursday, which the Bears won 3-2 (25-27, 25-19, 29-27, 21-25, 15-13) on the road. It was the second straight defeat for Del Tech, which had won three in a row before that. Delaware Tech averages just shy of 22 kills per match on the season, and has 79 service aces on the year. Opponents are hitting over .100 on the Terry Hawks this year, averaging slightly more kills per match (just shy of 24).
 
Ashley Kelly and Isadora Reichner are tied for the team lead in kills on the year at 42 apiece, heading into the Harcum Match. Kelly averages just over five kills per match, and is fourth on the team with 13 service aces this season. Kelly had a season-high eight kills at Harcum last month, and she had a season-best five service aces in the win over Lehigh Carbon last week. Against Lackawanna, she had five kills on 18 attacks, as well as four digs in the win.
 
Reichner has played in one match less than Kelly, averaging just over six kills per match this year. Reichner is third on the team with 59 digs this year. She's gone for double-digit kills in two matches this season, including her season-high eleven against Morris. Against Lackawanna last month, Reichner had ten kills on 28 attempts, hitting a season-best .250 against the Falcons.
 
Morgan Donahue is third on the team with 38 kills this season, averaging right around four kills per match this year. Donahue is second on the team with 20 service aces on the season, and is the team leader in digs. Donahue set her season-high in kills last month against Harcum with 13, her only double-digit output of the year. She had a season-high four service aces twice this season. Against Lackawanna, Donahue had two kills on four attempts, along with a season-high 20 digs against the Falcons.
 
Paige Orth is fourth on the team, averaging just over four kills per match this year. She's the team leader in blocks, with seven solos and eight assists heading into the Harcum match at home. Orth has set her season-high in kills twice this season at seven, including the match against Lackawanna, where she had seven kills on 17 attacks against the Falcons. Orth had two solo blocks and three block assists for her season-best against Southern Maryland.
 
Alexcia Sutton is the team-leader in service aces this season, averaging nearly an ace per set. Sutton is second on the team in assists, and second on the team in digs. Sutton set a season-high in service aces with eight against Lehigh Carbon, and also set her season-best with 35 digs against Morris. Against Lackawanna, Sutton set her season-high with six kills on 17 attempts.
 
Isabella Denk leads the Terry Hawks with just shy of 20 assists per match this year. Denk also is third on the team in service aces and digs. Denk set her season-high against the Falcons with 34 assists earlier this season. She has gone for double-digits in assists on eight separate occasions this year. She had a season-high four service aces in a win at Lehigh Carbon earlier this season.
 
The head volleyball coach for Delaware Tech is Leigh Desantis, in her first season in charge with the Terry Hawks. Desantis came to Newark in 2020 as an assistant, before taking over the program proper this season. Desantis has been coaching volleyball at all levels since 2008, and is also a full-time Major within the US Air Force in the Air Force Reserve Command.
 
The second opponent of the weekend will be Cecil College. The Eagles (7-4) come into the contest having lost two of their last three, including their most recent match, a 3-0 loss to Montgomery College (25-7, 25-20, 25-16). In that match, the Eagles overcame a slow first set to challenge the Raptors in the second and third set, but the Eagles couldn't overcome Montgomery. Cecil was led by Lydia Davis, who had eleven kills on 31 attempts, while also providing seven digs. Amanda Wagner provided four kills, while Natalie Diamond added three of her own. Skylar Klingler led the Eagles with 20 assists during the match, while Lily Landis and Wagner each led the team with eleven digs, apiece.  
 
The Eagles average 23 kills per match, and are hitting over .100 on the season. They average just shy of 23 assists per match, and are averaging over 3.5 service aces per set this season. The Eagles are holding their opponents to .073 hitting on the year.
 
Davis leads the Eagles with just under nine kills per match, at 105 total kills on the year. Davis is also the team leader in service aces at 42 this season, and is third on the team with 75 digs this year. Davis has gone over double-digits in kills on five separate occasions this season, including her season-high 19 in a win at Harcum College earlier this year. She's had a service ace in all but one match this year, and set a season-high with eight service aces against Garrett College last month. Davis had her eleven kills on 31 attacks and seven digs in the loss to Montgomery.
 
Wagner is second on the team with 79 total kills, averaging just over six kills per match this season. Wagner leads the Eagles with 88 digs so far this season. She's hit four double-digit kills twice this season, and set a season-high with eleven kills at Harcum College last month. Six times she's gone for double-digits in digs, putting up a season-best 17 at home vs. Harcum on October 3^rd. Against Montgomery, she managed four kills on 24 attacks, putting up eleven digs. It's the third straight match in which she had double-digit digs.  
 
Natalie Diamond is third on the team in kills, averaging just over three kills per match this year. Diamond has 13 service aces on the year, and 20 digs this season. Diamond had double-digit kills in one match this season, with ten at Harcum last month. She had a season-best five service aces in the win at RCSJ Gloucester. Against Montgomery, she had three kills on nine attempts for a .222 hitting percentage.
 
Klingler is the team-leader in helpers, with 257 on the year, averaging out to just shy of 21 per contest. Klingler has ten service aces this season, and has put up 50 digs this year. Klingler has gone over double-digit assists in every match this year, going for 20+ on six different occasions. Her best was 46 against Harcum College last month. She had 20 assists and a kill against Montgomery College on Wednesday.
 
The head coach for Cecil College is Eden Barton.
 
Match Details
The matches are set for an 11:00am ET start on Saturday, October 8^th inside the Delaware Tech gymnasium on the Stanton campus of Delaware Tech CC in Newark, DE. The first match, where Lackawanna takes on the hosts from Delaware Tech CC, will be at 11:00am ET, and the second match, against Cecil College, will follow at 1:00pm ET. Both matches will have a video livestream available on the Delaware Tech CC YouTube Channel HERE.
 
The Falcons will have another tri-match in their next match-ups, when they host both Harcum College and County College of Morris on Tuesday, October 11^th at the Lackawanna Student Union gymnasium in Scranton, PA.