Delgado Leads Hampton To First Big South Win in School History

Final Score: Hampton 3, UNC Asheville 1 (25-21, 20-25, 26-24, 25-23)
 
Location: Hampton, Va. (Boo Williams Sportsplex)
 
Records: Hampton – 6-7 (1-2), UNC Asheville – 5-7 (0-2)

Box Score 

The Short Story: The Lady Pirates prevailed in a tight matchup Thursday night to defeat UNC Asheville. The win was the first Big South victory in school history after joining the conference over the summer.
 
BEHIND THE NUMBERS

• Megann Delgado finished with a career day, posting 33 kills on an incredible .450 hitting percentage. Her kill total was two away from the school record for a four-set match, set by Vendula Strakova against Coppin State in 2014. It was tied for the second-most in a four-set match.
• Her 33 kills were the most in a match since Micah Leavell posted 30 against Norfolk State in 2016.
• Lena Reed-Petracek was instrumental in the 72 kills posted by HU on Thursday, finishing with 61 assists. Her total breaks her previous career best of 53 set against Bethune-Cookman last season, shattering the school record in the process.
• Hampton posted 68 assists as a team, breaking the previous four-set record of 67 set in 1999 against Maryland-Eastern Shore. The Lady Pirates had 68 assists in a five-set match against Evansville in 2013.
• Kyndall Nicholas and Lena Washington each hit over .220 for the match with 11 kills.
• HU hit .277 for the match while UNC Asheville finished with a .230 mark. The Lady Pirates ended with 72 kills while the Bulldogs tallied just 43. 
• The win was the first in four tries over UNC Asheville for the Lady Pirates.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• UNC Asheville led 3-1 in the first set, but the Lady Pirates rallied for a 5-3 edge and held the advantage for the remainder of the set. Delgado had eight kills in the first set to put the Bulldogs behind.
• Hampton jumped out to an early 5-0 lead in the third set to quell the momentum gained by UNC Asheville in the second.
• Despite giving up a few points of that five-point lead, HU managed to keep the edge on the Bulldogs to pull out to a 23-20 margin. UNC Asheville scored three-straight points to tie it at 23, forcing a Hampton timeout. Peyton McClinton finished off a kill to put the visitors up for the first time of the set.
• Hampton turned away multiple UNC Asheville attempts, ultimately getting a kill from Delgado to fight off set point. A pair of Bulldog errors won the set for the Lady Pirates.
• The fourth set saw the visitors rally late again to knot it at 23-all. An attack error brought match point to HU with Delgado on the service line. Delgado sent a great attempt over the net and the speed and angle was too much for UNC Asheville as the star of Thursday's match won it for the Lady Pirates.

WHAT'S NEXT
Hampton will host USC Upstate (4-12/0-2) in another match at the Boo Williams Sportsplex on Friday. The match is slated for a 6 p.m. start.
 
For more information on Hampton University volleyball, please contact the Office of Sports Information at 757-727-5811 or visit the official Pirates website at www.hamptonpirates.com.

HAMPTON UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS STRATEGIC COMMUNICATION