BOX SCORE TOWSON, Md. – The Towson University volleyball team had three players record double digit kills in a 3-0 victory over the University of Delaware in the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) opener for both teams Wednesday night in SECU Arena. The Tigers (14-1, 1-0 CAA) got a "double-double" from senior Saitaua Iosia as they won their fifth straight match.

"They made good adjustments and tested us down the stretch," said Tiger Head Coach Don Metil. "I thought our performance all night long was consistent and we took care of the ball. Our big kids showed up and we took care of the ball defensively. Our game plan was to contain their big three kids and we did that tonight."

Towson got off to a quick start in the first set as senior Paige Sekerak's service ace put the home team ahead 9-2. The Tigers pushed the advantage to 13-3 on a kill from senior Victoria Williams and Delaware (7-9, 0-1 CAA) called timeout. The Tigers continued to pressure the Blue Hens as a kill from freshman Barbara Lopez made it 19-9. A kill from Williams closed out a 25-13 first set win for the Tigers.

Junior Haley Pa'akaula had five first set kills to lead the Tigers.

Tied at 8-8 in the second set, Towson used a 8-4 run to take a 16-12 lead. Redshirt sophomore Candace Steadman had a kill and a pair of block assists during that run by the Tigers. Delaware called timeout and responded with a 5-1 run to pull to within one, 18-17. Katie Hillman had a pair of kills for the Blue Hens during that stretch. The two teams traded points down the stretch before a kill from Iosia closed out a 25-20 Towson set win. That gave the home team a 2-0 lead in the match.

Steadman had four blocks in the set for the Tigers.

The third set proved to be a back-and-forth battle as there were 18 ties and six lead changes. Towson led 23-21 before the Blue Hens battled back and tied the set at 25-25. The two teams went back and forth over the next several plays. A kill from Alexa Swann had Delaware a point away from forcing a fourth set, 29-28. However the Tigers responded with a kill from Lopez and a block from Iosia and Steadman to take a 30-29 lead. The Tigers closed out the set, 31-29 on a kill from Iosia and claimed victory in the match.

Iosia posted 10 kills in the third set and finished with a match-high 16. She added 11 digs for her third "double-double" of the season. Pa'akaula, the reigning CAA Offensive Player of the Week, contributed 11 kills, seven digs and five blocks. Williams posted 11 kills while hitting a team-high .421. Redshirt junior Aimee Schubert dished out 24 assists with six digs while Lopez had 17 helpers. Steadman had a career-high eight blocks while Sekerak finished with 17 digs.

Hillman led Delaware with 10 kills and five digs while Erin Layne came off the bench to record 20 assists.

Towson puts its current win streak on the line when it heads to CAA defending champion, College of Charleston on Friday, Sept. 26 for a 7 p.m. match.