Box Score LANGHORNE (Pa.) -- First-year head coach Geena Close led the Delaware Valley University volleyball team to a thrilling 3-2 road victory at Cairn University in the 2021 season opener. 

The Highlanders narrowly won the first two sets, 27-25 and 25-23, to take a comfortable two set advantage. The Aggies committed 18 errors with 18 kills through the two sets while Kean had 23 kills to 14 turnovers. 

DelVal battled back with a 27-25 victory in the third set and sent the match to a fifth and final set with a 25-18 win in the fourth set. In the fifth set, the Aggies had seven kills and just three errors and forced Cairn into five errors with just four kills. 

Emma Helverson and Olivia Deffendall each recorded double-digit kills for the Green and Gold. Helverson led all players with 15 and Deffendall followed with 10. Deffendall added three service aces and 27 digs. Caitlin Nemil had a game-high 39 assists with three kills and one ace, and Gretta Schneider led all players with 32 digs. 

Close and the Aggies will look to make it two-in-a-row during its home opener against Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) Freedom foe Wilkes University on Wednesday, September 8 at 7 p.m.