NEW CASTLE, Del. - The Goldey-Beacom College volleyball team fell 3-0 on the road against crosstown rival, Wilmington University in Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference play Thurs. night at the Pratt Center.

The Lightning (7-8, 3-4) dropped the first set 25-12, but gave a much better effort in the second and third set before coming up short both times, 25-23 and 27-25. Wilmington improved to 8-5 overall and 5-2 in league play with the win.

Freshman outside hitter Kadi McCoy led the Lightning with 11 kills and nine digs while senior Rebecca Stoffer pitched in with nine kills and hit a team-best .364 for the night. Junior setter Monica Dempsey directed the offense with 22 asssists and freshman libero Niki Receveur had a team-high 13 digs.

Kaitlin Shorter and Brooke Foskey led the Wildcat attack with 10 kills apiece while Shannon Rumple had 22 assists to go with 11 digs. Shorter also had a match-high six blocks (one solo). Mia Padilla led Wilmington defensively with 17 digs. Wilmington out-hit GBC .248 to .107 for the night and the Lightning hit into eight Wildcat team blocks.

In the first set, Wilmington used a 10-0 run to turn a 5-4 lead into a15-4 advantage led by the service of Nicole Wiechecki and three Foskey kills. The Wildcats also closed out the set on a 5-0 run to win by their largest margin, 25-12. Wilmington hit .393 as a team while GBC managed just five kills to go with its five errors.

The Wildcats looked as though they would also run away with set two as they jumped out to an 11-3 lead after the fourth Lightning attack error of the set. The Lightning slowly but surely fought their way back, closing to within four points on five different occasions before breaking through with a 4-0 run to force the first tie of the set, 22-22. After a GBC service error, the Lightning tied the score once more at 23 after a Wilmington attack error, but consecutive kills by Wiechecki and Foskey led to a 25-23 set two win for the Wildcats.

In the third set, the Lightning turned a 4-2 deficit into a 7-4 lead courtesy of a 5-0 run highlighted by two Stoffer service aces and two Taylor Moyer kills. A 6-1 Wildcat run gave Wilmington the lead back though at 10-8, and the hosts clung to that lead for nearly the entire match. GBC remained in striking distance the entire set, never allowing Wilmington a lead of over four. Trailing 22-18, Kadi McCoy led the Lightning on a 6-0 run to snatch a 24-22 advantage. McCoy began the run with a kill, then served for five straight points to put GBC in front by one. Wilmington, facing game point, was somehow able to rally and come away with a 27-25 win and complete the 3-0 match victory. 

GBC is back home at the Jones Center on Sat. after dropping two straight on the road. The Lightning will host winless Concordia (0-13, 0-7 CACC) at 1 p.m.