SOUTH ORANGE, N.J. – The Towson University volleyball team battled for a 3-0 win over Canisius in the opening match of the Seton Hall Tournament on Friday afternoon. The Tigers (5-0) posted 13 service aces including seven in the third set to secure the victory.

Towson won its fifth straight match to open the 2016 campaign. The last time the Tigers opened the season with five straight victories was 2014 when the squad opened the season with nine straight victories.

THE BASICS
Towson 3, Canisius 0 (25-19, 25-21, 25-12)
Walsh Gymnasium, South Orange, N.J.
Day One of the Seton Hall Tournament

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Tigers jumped out to a 7-1 lead on a kill from freshman Marrisa Wonders in the first set. A kill from sophomore Jocelyn Kuilan pushed the advantage to 20-12. Following a timeout, Canisius scored six of the next eight points and made it 23-18 in the set. A service ace from Wonders gave Towson a 25-19 first set victory.
• Towson was led by Kuilan, who had five kills in the set and posted a .455 hitting percentage while adding two service aces.
• Tied at 7-7 in the second set, Canisius (2-2) used a 3-1 run to take an 11-8 edge in the set. A 4-0 run gave Towson a 14-12 advantage as Kuilan had a kill and a block. The two teams traded points before back-to-back kills from redshirt senior Candace Steadman and sophomore Carola Biver gave the Tigers a 21-17 lead in the set. An attack error by the Golden Griffins gave Towson a 25-21 set win and a 2-0 lead in the match.
• Towson held Canisius to a .027 hitting percentage in the set while redshirt sophomore Anna Holehouse recorded seven digs.
• A service ace from senior Lindsay Flaherty gave the Tigers a 5-1 advantage in the third set and forced Canisius to use an early timeout. Back-to-back service aces from senior Jessica Lewis extended the Towson advantage to 15-8. A block from Lewis closed out a 25-12 set win and gave the Tigers a victory in the match.
• The third set proved to be about the service aces as Lewis, Flaherty and Holehouse each had multiple aces in the set. .

 
 
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE

• Towson has not dropped a set so far this season as all five of its victories have been by 3-0 scores.
• Wonders posted her first career double-double as the freshman setter finished with 18 assists and 11 digs.
• Kuilan had her first double digit kill performance of the season as she contributed a match-high 11 kills while hitting .476.
• Holehouse led the match with 18 digs while Lewis had nine kills and a team-high four service aces.
• The win was head coach Don Metil's 298th of his career, 68 of which have come at Towson.

The Tigers wrap up the Seton Hall Tournament on Saturday, Sept. 3 with a pair of matches. Towson will battle George Washington at 12 p.m. and the host Pirates at 7:30 p.m.