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WILMINGTON, Ohio –  On the final day of the regular season, the Capital University volleyball team garnered their first victory of the year with a 3-0 sweep of hosts Wilmington College in the second game of a doubleheader on Tuesday evening. 

After dropping a thrilling first match to the Quakers in five lengthy sets, Capital buckled in during the second match, winning a convincing 3-0 decision to bring their regular season record to 1-17. Wilmington sits at 1-13 on the year after picking up their first win of the year in game one. 

GAME ONE - Wilmington def. Capital 3-2 (19-25, 25-19, 21-25, 25-19, 15-12)
The Crusader offense found rhythm in the first match, but in the end, could not fend off the Quakers in the nail-biting teeter totter of a game. Miranda Jordan (14), Delanie Nahikian (13), and Audrey James (12) all contributed double figure kills while hitting a positive clip. Nahikian attacked at an impressive .310 percentage to lead the lines. Setters Jenay Kocsis and Emily Cooper shared responsibilities and combined for 44 assists in the match. 

In the back row, Erin O'Connell scooped up a season-high 23 digs. Jordan capped off an impressive all-around performance with 13 digs defensively. Of the team's 16 block assist, Grace Grundy swatted back six Quakers attack efforts to help matters. 

In the first set of the match, Capital took advantage of two separate six point runs to ensure they would take the set 25-19. Down by one and 13-12, Kocsis served five straight to help push the Crusaders forward in the set. Shortly thereafter, Capital remained deadlocked, until O'Connell served the team through the set. 

Capital dropped the second set before capturing the third set by a 25-21 score. The Quakers once again fought back to take the fourth set forcing a crucial fifth frame. Unfortunately, in the ultimate set, Capital was undone by a six-point onslaught from Wilmington, leading to the narrow 15-12 defeat.

GAME TWO - Capital def. Wilmington 3-0 (25-21, 25-17, 25-23)
Once again, a pair of Crusaders found themselves on the leaderboard in the offensive categories. Audrey James (12) and Delanie Nahikian (11) contributed the lion's share of the team's 35 kills in the match. Reagan Willoughby took the reigns as the setter, dishing out 33 helpers. 

Defensively, O'Connell was once again kept busy, this time with 13 digs. Willoughby (12) and Jordan (11) were both in there with helping hands. Grundy was once again busy, swatting down five balls this time.

The second half of the evening's doubleheader finished much more in favor of the Crusaders. Capital never really cemented their foothold on control of the sweep early on, but they did manage to fend off the Quakers long enough to claim their all important first win of the season. 

In the second set, Capital jumped out to a commanding 11-3 lead by a Reagan Willoughby service streak. The lead was really all the Crusaders needed to hold off the opponent late in the set. 

The final set of the match was nothing short to come by for the Crusaders who found themselves battling hard to hang on late. The Quakers grabbed a hold of a 17-14 lead, but Capital wreaked havoc to right the ship. Behind a combination of both Wilmington errors and great play, the Crusaders flipped the script to squeeze out a 25-23 victory. The match was sealed by an ace by Mackenzie Halliday.

The win marked Capital Volleyball's first match win since defeating the Quakers on October 29, 2019. 

THE OPPONENT
Wilmington was dominated offensively by Rachel Kennedy who had 33 combined kills while Karley Shlensker scooped up a team-high 37 digs. 

OAC TOURNAMENT OUTLOOK
Capital finds themselves near the bottom of the standings heading to the OAC Tournament, which is set to take place between April 13 - April 16. As other teams in the conference play on Friday, April 9th, the Crusaders will await final rankings and outcomes to determine their next match.