BOX SCORE
Banner Elk, N.C.----The #21 Wingate University Bulldogs held Lander University to a hitting percentage of -.058 en route to a 3-0 victory over the Bearcats Saturday morning on day two of the 2011 Carolinas Challenge Volleyball tournament at Lees-McRae College. The Bulldogs won by scores of 25-16, 25-20 and 25-13 to improve to 3-0 on the season. Wingate has now won 26 consecutive regular season matches and improves to 134-8 overall since the beginning of the 2007 season, good for a .944 winning percentage which leads all of Division II. The Bearcats fall to 1-2 overall.
Redshirt sophomore middle blocker Anna Hilton (Hickory, N.C.) had 10 kills, five blocks and five digs to lead the Wingate attack, while junior middle blocker Grace Krauser (Louisville, Ky.) added 10 kills, four digs, three blocks and three aces. Senior setter Liz Willis (Raleigh, N.C.) handed out 34 assists, while senior libero Maggie Malone (Chicago, Ill.) collected 11 digs. Sophomore outside hitter Cory McGowan (Pittsburgh, Pa.) added seven kills and nine digs for the Bulldogs.
"Lander is a pretty good Peach Belt team, so it was important for us to win this match this morning," head coach Shelton Collier says. "Our block and defense was excellent at times, and we were able to completely neutralize their top hitters, which was our goal. We hope we are now well-prepared for our next match against Flagler, which is obviously a huge match for both teams."
Mallory Wasik led the Bearcats with six kills to go along with eight digs. Rebekah Davis added five kills for the Bearcats. Jessica Register handed out 21 assists, while Madison Kubal registered a match-high 16 digs.
An ace from Malone, followed by a block from Krauser, Hilton and senior outside hitter Janice Ehorn (Orange, Conn.) gave Wingate an early 11-5 lead in the opening set. A Krauser kill pushed Wingate’s lead to eight at 16-8. The Bearcats trimmed the lead to five on a Wingate error, but the Bulldogs responded by scoring three of the next four points to push the lead back to seven at 21-14, thanks to a pair of kills from sophomore middle blocker Allison Rickher (Matthews, N.C.). Krauser hammered home two more kills to help Wingate put the first set away.
The Bearcats jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the second set, but Wingate answered with a 13-6 run to take a 13-11 lead. Krauser had a pair of kills and a block in the spurt. A 3-0 run, capped by a kill and a block from freshman middle blocker Kelsey Handel (Knoxville, Tenn.) would make it 18-14. Krauser and Hilton combined for a block, while Hilton followed with a kill to stretch Wingate’s advantage to six at 22-16. A kill from Ehorn made it 24-19, while McGowan capped the second set with a kill.
The Bulldogs used an 8-0 run to break open a close set in the third, taking a 19-11 lead. Krauser started the spurt with a kill, while adding three aces as the ‘Dogs pulled away. Back-to-back McGowan kills, along with a Hilton kill gave Wingate a 22-13 lead. Hilton added another kill to make it 24-13, while a Lander error finished the match.
Wingate hit .274 on the match, with 40 kills and 14 errors in 95 attacks. Lander had 22 kills and 28 errors in 104 attacks for its -.058 hitting percentage. It is the second time in three matches this season that Wingate has held its opponent to a negative hitting percentage.
The Bulldogs have one final match in the weekend’s tournament, taking on Flagler College a 4 p.m. The match will be a rematch of the last two Southeast Regional championship contests. Flagler won in 2009 to reach the Elite Eight, while Wingate won in 2010 to advance to the Elite Eight. The Bulldogs and Saints have met five times since the start of the 2009 season, with Wingate holding a 3-2 advantage. Lander will take on St. Andrews at 1:30 p.m.
