BETHLEHEM, Pa. – The Cleveland State volleyball team closed out the first weekend of the 2026 campaign Saturday, picking up a 3-0 victory over Gardner-Webb. With the win, the Vikings are now 2-1 on the young season.
Three Vikings finished with double-digit kills to lead the Viking offense, including
Bryn VanVleet with 12.
Jazen DeBina and
Addison Koppelman both recorded 10 kills on the day, while the Vikings hit .316 as a team on the match.
The Vikings combined for 11 service aces, including three each from DeBina, VanVleet and Koppelman.
Defensively,
Vayda Delventhal finished with 13 digs, while
Julia Jozefov notched four blocks and
Fiona Cooper added three.
During the first set the two teams were evenly matched until the 20-15 mark, when Cleveland State rattled off three straight points to gain the five-point advantage on back-to-back DeBina aces.
The Vikings then controlled play throughout the rest of the frame, closing the 25-19 first set with a Koppelman kill.
Cleveland State carried its momentum into the second set then, gaining a 14-9 lead midway through on a DeBina kill. The Vikings went on to hold a sizeable lead throughout the rest of the frame, recording three of the final four points on a trio of kills from
JeriLynn Koehler and DeBina for the 25-17 victory.
The third set was much of the same, as Cleveland State controlled play throughout the majority of the frame, closing out the three-set sweep with a Jozefov kill for the 25-21 third set victory.
The Vikings will remain on the road next weekend, taking part in the Mercyhurst Invitational on Friday, September 4 and Saturday, September 5.
