Volleyball Sweeps No. 1 Seed Wilmington to Earn Spot in CACC Championship Match

WILMINGTON, Del. – Fresh off a 3-0 sweep of Goldey-Beacom in Tuesday's CACC Quarterfinals, the University of Bridgeport's volleyball team brought out the brooms again on Saturday, rolling past top-seeded Wilmington in the semifinals, 25-23, 25-20, 25-17. With the victory, the Purple Knights advance to the conference championship match for the second time in three years, where they will take on second-seeded Holy Family on Sunday at noon.

UB's triumph over the Wildcats featured an impressive .361 team hitting percentage, with senior Lucia Tomiello turning in a historic performance.

Tomiello piled up a season-high 13 kills on 15 swings without an error (.867), setting a new CACC Tournament record for hitting percentage (minimum 10 attempts). She adds even more accolades to a career that features three CACC All-Conference selections.  

Tomiello's record-breaking performance came on the same day she was honored with the CACC's Top XVI Award, given to the student-athlete with the highest cumulative GPA at the Finals Site.

Junior Hailey Jessen and freshman Madison Mohan were also marvelous for UB on Saturday. Jessen rattled off a team-high 15 kills for a second straight match while Mohan delivered 12 putaways to help Bridgeport control the net.

Jessen also finished the afternoon with eight digs and three service aces.

Freshman setter Camdyn Cieszkiewicz consistently put Tomiello, Jessen and Mohan in great spots to attack. The Illinois native racked up 42 assists to match her highest total in a three-setter this season, and the fifth time she has eclipsed the 40-mark.

Cieszkiewicz has been sensational during this late-season run for the Purple Knights. She is now averaging 11.2 assists per set across UB's last six matches.

Defensively speaking, Elaine DeLallo once again led UB in digs with 15 while Kenyce Johnson chipped in nine of her own. Speaking of Johnson, she hammered a team-high four services aces as well.

UP NEXT
The Purple Knights will face Holy Family for a second time this season in the CACC Championship Match tomorrow at noon. UB defeated the Tigers, 3-0, in their regular-season matchup on Oct. 25.