Wingate, N.C.----The Wingate University Bulldogs avenged their only SAC loss of the season Friday night, prevailing 3-1 against Lenoir-Rhyne University in South Atlantic Conference volleyball action in Cuddy Arena. Wingate won by scores of 25-21, 25-22, 22-25 and 25-15 to improve to 19-2 overall and 13-1 in the SAC. The Bears fall to 12-7 overall and 10-4 in the conference.

Senior right-side hitter Shelly Stumpff (Iowa City, Iowa) had 13 kills, 17 digs, six aces and three blocks to lead the Wingate attack, hitting .306. Junior All-American Abby Saehler (Iowa City, Iowa) added 13 kills, 11 digs, four blocks and three aces, hitting .308. Freshman outside hitter Oakley Attaway (Belle Isle, Fla.) had 10 kills and 11 digs, while freshman middle blocker Anna Holmquist (Lincoln, Neb.) hit .417 with six kills and three blocks. Freshman setter Megan Schildmeyer (St. Charles, Ill.) handed out 22 assists, while freshman libero Kimberly Hovey (Raleigh, N.C.) collected 16 digs.

"This was a special win for us on homecoming weekend," head coach Shelton Collier says. "We had so many volleyball alumni in the stands tonight and we were proud to play well with them here. Those alumni won quite a few championships while they were here, so it was great for our current team to have their support tonight."

Brooke Redmond had 10 kills, five digs and three blocks to lead the Lenoir-Rhyne attack. Morgan Bunker and Brandi Thomas added nine kills apiece, while Ashley Wells contributed seven kills and four digs. Briana Gottberg handed out 20 assists, while Bailey Cloninger collected 21 digs.

A kill and an ace from Attaway helped Wingate jump out to a 5-0 lead in the first set. A Bunker block and Thomas kill got the Bears within one at 10-9. A pair of kills from Wells tied it at 12, but an Iris Brewer (Cincinnati, Ohio) kill and Stumpff ace put the 'Dogs on top 16-13. A Thomas kill and Wingate error got LRU back within one at 20-19, but a block from Stumpff and Saehler put the 'Dogs back on top by three. An Emily Steele kill got Lenoir-Rhyne within two at 23-21, but a Saehler kill made it 24-21. Katie Bludau (Seabrook, Texas) capped the set with an ace.

Kills from Steele and Abbi Stacherski gave the Bears a 9-7 lead in set two. Wingate responded with a 4-0 run, taking a 12-10 lead. Holmquist highlighted the flurry with a pair of blocks. A Thomas kill put the Bears back on top 14-13, but a Saehler kill and two Stumpff aces made it 17-14. Kills from Bunker and Thomas helped the Bears tie it at 20. A Lenoir-Rhyne error, followed by back-to-back Holmquist kills put Wingate on top 23-20. Another LRU error made it 24-21, while Holmquist capped the frame with a kill.

Lenoir-Rhyne used an 8-0 run to take a 15-9 lead in set three. Redmond had three kills in the flurry. Wingate cut the lead to four at 19-15 on kills from Bludau and Saehler, but three straight Bulldog errors gave Lenoir-Rhyne a 22-16 lead. The 'Dogs responded with a 6-0 run, getting two Saehler aces along with two Holmquist kills to make it 22-22. Redmond answered with a kill, while a Thomas kill made it 24-22. Thomas followed with a block to end the set.

Kills from Stumpff and Attaway, followed by back-to-back Saehler kills gave Wingate an 11-4 lead in set four. Kills from Attaway and Stumpff pushed the lead to nine at 14-5. A kill from Steele got LRU within five at 16-11, but a kill and an ace from Stumpff put the Bulldogs on top 22-13. An ace from Bludau made it 24-14, while a Saehler kill ended the match.

Wingate hit .193 on the night, with 46 kills and 18 errors in 145 attacks. LRU had 42 kills and 23 errors in 152 attacks, hitting .125. Stumpff had six of Wingate's 12 aces on the night. Saehler and Bludau led the way with four blocks apiece.

The Bulldogs are back in action Saturday, hosting Brevard at 5:30 p.m.