Hempstead, NY – Sophomore setter Hannah Klemm had 45 assists, senior outside hitter Kelsie Wills totaled 15 kills and senior middle blocker Nuria Lopes da Silva added 13 kills to lead the Hofstra Volleyball team to a dominating three-set sweep of James Madison on Friday evening at a raucous David S. Mack Physical Education Center. 

Set scores were 25-12, 25-22 and 25-17 in favor of the Pride, which avenged a loss to James Madison back on October 18. 

Hofstra improved to 25-4 overall and 12-2 in Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) play, while James Madison fell to 15-13 and 7-8 in conference action. 

The Pride also got 17 digs from junior libero Corrina Delgadillo. 

Hofstra got off to a hot start in the match as the Pride would score the first five points of the contest and seven of the first eight before James Madison was forced to call a timeout. Senior outside hitter Emily Burke was the key early on as she notched three kills during the match-opening run. The Dukes would only get as close as four the rest of the way before Hofstra dominated to the tune of a 13-point win in the opening stanza. Lopes da Silva was huge in the first set with seven kills for the Pride. 

The second set would see Hofstra close the stanza on a 9-2 run as they overcame a late 20-16 deficit before capturing three 25-22 win. The set was knotted at 11 before JMU scored three straight points to lead 14-11 after a kill from Kate Whitmire. Trailing by four late, a kill from Wills would get the run started and she would total five kills during the set-closing run to push the Pride to the two sets to none advantage. 

A back and forth third set would be tied at 14 before the Pride used a quick 3-0 run to take a 17-14 lead using kills from Klemm and Wills. That would prove to be enough breathing room for the Pride as they pulled away for the eight-point win. 

Hofstra hit a .312 clip in the match, while holding the Dukes to a .156 attack percentage. 

Lizzy Briones led James Madison with seven kills, while Sarah Patterson had 19 assists for the Dukes. 

Wills added nine digs, while senior middle blocker Adama Aja had seven kills on nine attempts with no errors for a .778 attack percentage. She added a team-best three blocks. 

Hofstra returns to action tomorrow when it hosts Charleston at 7 p.m. The match will pit the top two teams in the conference standings as the Cougars are 13-2 and the Pride is 12-2. With the regular season concluding on Sunday, the match will go a long way in deciding the host for the conference tournament next week.