BOX SCORE
Newberry, S.C.----For the first time this season, the 15th-ranked Wingate University Bulldogs dropped the opening set. Wingate responded by winning the final three sets, defeating the Wolves of Newberry College by scores of 23-25, 25-22, 25-15 and 25-19 to improve to 18-0 overall and 9-0 in the SAC. The ‘Dogs continue their best start in school history, while winning their 41st straight regular season contest and 73rd consecutive SAC match. The Wolves fall to 9-10 overall and 2-7 in the conference.
Redshirt sophomore middle blocker
Anna Hilton (Hickory, N.C.) had 11 kills, seven digs and five blocks to lead the Wingate attack. Sophomore outside hitter
Cory McGowan (Pittsburgh, Pa.) added 11 kills and 11 digs, while junior middle blocker
Grace Krauser (Louisville, Ky.) had 10 kills, five digs and five blocks. Freshman middle blocker
Lexi Potter (North Liberty, Iowa) had four kills and seven blocks, while senior libero
Maggie Malone (Chicago, Ill.) collected 34 digs. Senior setter
Liz Willis (Raleigh, N.C.) notched her second straight double-double with 36 assists and 14 digs, while adding five blocks.
“Newberry is a very good, young team, fresh off a big win over Catawba last night,” head coach
Shelton Collier says. “They really pressed us today. Once again, our recipe for winning was shutting down their key hitters and having just enough offense to get out with a win.”
Jessica King had 11 kills to lead the way for the Wolves. Samantha Parrish added 10 kills and 16 digs, but also had 10 errors, hitting .000 for the match. Amanda Soper also had 10 kills for the Wolves. Blair Browning handed out 22 assists, while Lindsey Hollingsworth collected 21 digs.
A Potter kill and Newberry error gave Wingate a 17-14 lead in the first set. A kill from King, along with Wingate error tied it at 18. The ‘Dogs pushed the lead back to two at 21-19 on a block from Willis and Potter. The Wolves responded with four straight points to take a 23-21 advantage. Wingate had three errors in the stretch, while Anne Staudinger capped it with an ace. A Soper kill made it 24-22, while Hilton responded with a kill to cut the lead to one. Newberry claimed the opening set on a Bulldog error.
A block from Krauser and freshman outside hitter
Susie Murach (Burke, Va.), along with a Newberry error gave Wingate a 15-13 lead in the second set. Kills from Parrish and King tied it at 15. The ‘Dogs answered with three straight points, capped by a block from Murach to go on top 18-15. A block and a kill from King tied the set at 18. The Bulldogs would regain a two-point advantage on a kill from McGowan to make it 22-20. A kill from Soper got the Wolves to within one at 23-22. McGowan answered with a kill, while a Newberry error capped the second set for Wingate.
The Bulldogs jumped out to a 9-3 lead in set three, getting two kills and a block from Krauser to spark the opening spurt. A Parrish kill and Wingate error trimmed the lead to four at 13-9. Kills from Murach and Hilton pushed the lead back to six. A 3-0 run, sparked by a McGowan kill, put Wingate on top 22-14. Hilton and sophomore middle blocker
Allison Rickher (Matthews, N.C.) capped the third frame, giving the Bulldogs a 2-1 lead in the match.
Kills from Krauser and McGowan, along with a block from Potter and Willis gave Wingate an 11-8 lead in the fourth set. Newberry had the answer, tying the set at 13 on a kill from Lauren Prachar. The Bulldogs answered with a key 5-0 run to take an 18-13 advantage. Murach had a pair of kills in the stretch, while sophomore defensive specialist
Rianne Lang (Littleton, Colo.) added an ace. The Wolves cut the lead to three at 21-18 on a King kill and Wingate error. Back-to-back Newberry errors gave the Bulldogs a 24-19 advantage. McGowan finished the match with a kill.
The Bulldogs had 43 kills and 23 errors in 152 attacks, hitting .132 on the afternoon. The Wolves hit .046, with 44 kills and 36 errors in 173 attacks. Wingate piled up a season-high 15 blocks on the day. Potter’s career-high seven led the way, while Willis, Hilton and Krauser added five each.
The Bulldogs return to action Tuesday, traveling to Catawba for a 7 p.m. start.
