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Wingate University Athletics

Volleyball

#20 Bulldogs notch 54th straight regular season victory

Box Score                    PHOTO GALLERY

Wingate, N.C.----
The 20th-ranked Wingate University Bulldogs registered their fourth consecutive sweep Tuesday night, defeating the visiting Crusaders of Belmont Abbey College in NCAA Division II volleyball action in Cuddy Arena. Wingate won by scores of 25-8, 25-18 and 25-17 to improve to 4-0 on the season. The Crusaders fall to 4-1 overall. The Bulldogs have now won a nation’s best 54 consecutive regular season matches, dating back to early in the 2010 season.
 
Senior middle blocker Grace Krauser (Louisville, Ky.) had nine kills, four blocks and three aces to lead the Wingate attack, hitting .474 on the night. Junior outside hitter Cory McGowan (Pittsburgh, Pa.) and redshirt junior right-side hitter Anna Hilton (Hickory, N.C.) had seven kills each. Both did their damage in just two sets of action, with Hilton hitting .389 and McGowan adding seven digs and three blocks. Five other Bulldogs registered four kills each.
 
Both setters notched double-doubles for Wingate Tuesday night. Redshirt sophomore Alison Cooke (Davidson, N.C.) had 21 assists and 13 digs. Freshman Iris Brewer (Cincinnati, Ohio) had 16 assists and 11 digs, while junior libero Rianne Lang (Littleton, Colo.) collected 11 digs in two sets of action.

"Tonight we had some strong offensive performances, and showed some improvements we have been working on in practice  recently," head coach Shelton Collier says. "Obviously, we had some high-kill, low-error efficiency by a number of players, which is great to see. This was our final tune-up before we play in the big tournament this weekend, and I know our players are really looking forward to it."

Junior outside hitter Lydia Schellenberg (Jacksonville, Fla.) had eight kills and 15 digs to lead the Belmont Abbey attack. Senior outside hitter Angela Jubb (Peachtree City, Ga.) added seven kills and 13 digs, while freshman outside hitter Hannah Schellenberg (Jacksonville, Fla.) had six kills and 15 digs. Senior setter Kay Schellenberg (Jacksonville, Fla.) handed out 25 assists while collecting 14 digs.
 
The Bulldogs came out on fire to start the match, jumping out to a 9-0 lead. McGowan had two kills and two blocks in the early flurry. After a Crusader kill, Wingate added a 6-0 run to push the led to 15-1. Hilton had two kills, while Krauser added a kill and a block. A kill and a block from McGowan put Wingate on top 24-8, while a Belmont Abbey error capped the opening frame. The Bulldogs hit .290 in the first set, while the Crusaders hit -.171.
 
Wingate used a 6-0 run in the second set to take a 13-7 advantage. Krauser started the spurt with three straight kills, while Hilton capped it with a kill. A block and an ace from Krauser pushed the lead to seven. The Crusaders trimmed the lead to four when kills from Jubb and Hannah Schellenberg made it 20-16. Wingate scored the next three points, getting two Hilton kills along with a Krauser ace to push the lead back to seven at 23-16. A pair of Belmont Abbey errors capped the second set for Wingate.
 
The Bulldogs used a 4-0 run to take a 13-8 lead in the third set. Freshman outside hitter Hannah Huffman (Colorado Springs, Colo.) had a pair of kills in the spurt. Kills from Krauser and junior middle blocker Allison Rickher (Matthews, N.C.) put Wingate on top 19-12. A kill from freshman middle blocker Caitlin Hankins (Orlando, Fla.) helped the Crusaders cut the lead to four at 21-17. The Bulldogs responded by scoring the final four points of the set. Back-to-back kills from Huffman got it started, while Rickher finished the match with an ace.
 
Wingate had 44 kills and just eight errors in 130 attacks on the night, hitting .277. Belmont Abbey had 28 kills and 22 errors, hitting .044 for the match. Krauser had three of Wingate’s five aces, while McGowan’s four blocks were a match high. The Crusaders did not have a block or an ace against the Bulldogs.
 
Wingate returns to action this weekend, traveling to USC Aiken for four matches in two days. The Bulldogs take on Nova Southeastern and USC Aiken Friday, then face Augusta State and 15th-ranked Flagler on Saturday. Belmont Abbey returns to action Friday, taking on Montreat at 2 p.m.
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