Misericordia University Athletics

The Misericordia University women's volleyball team earned a hard-fought 3-2 victory over Haverford for its first win of the season, Friday night.
 
Cassandra Genduso led the Cougars with 15 kills while Keira McCaffrey added 10 kills. Katie Royds finished with a team-high 20 assists.
 
Misericordia jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the opening set, highlighted by a kill from Sarah Steeber and an ace from Maggie Duda. After Haverford answered with several quick points, the Cougars extended their advantage to 8-3.
 
Haverford eventually cut the deficit to 12-11 and the teams traded points throughout the remainder of the set.  Misericordia took a 23-21 lead and McCaffrey then recorded a kill followed by an ace from Isabella Lutter, to give the Cougars the 25-21 win.
 
Misericordia again grabbed an early lead in the second set, using a Haverford service error to spark a 7-2 run.
 
Haverford responded with an 11-2 run, but the Cougars stayed composed as the teams continued to trade points.
 
With MU leading 23-21, Duda delivered an ace before McCaffrey and Lutter teamed up for a block to seal a 25-23 victory.
 
The Cougars got on the board first in the third set on a Lily Anderson ace. After a back-and-forth start, Haverford took control and maintained the lead the rest of the way, closing out the set 25-19.
 
Misericordia opened the fourth set with a 2-0 advantage after a Genduso kill and a block by Genduso and McCaffrey. Haverford quickly evened the score, but the Cougars regained the lead at 5-3 after claiming two of the next three kills.
 
The Fords then scored four straight points to take a 7-5 lead. McCaffrey answered with a kill that sparked a 10-2 Misericordia run, putting the Cougars ahead 15-9.
 
Haverford responded with nine unanswered points, however, and Misericordia found itself trailing 19-15. The Cougars battled until the end but could not erase the deficit as Haverford forced a decisive fifth set with a 25-19 win.
 
In the final set, Haverford took an early 3-0 lead before Misericordia rallied to tie the score at 5-5. After falling behind 7-6, the Cougars answered with a run to take an 8-7 advantage.
 
Misericordia extended its lead to 13-10 before Haverford attempted another comeback with two straight points. The Cougars held their ground, finishing off the set 15-12 to secure the 3-2 victory.