Wingate, N.C.----The Wingate University Bulldogs guaranteed at least a share of their 11th consecutive regular season SAC title Friday night, defeating visiting Mars Hill University 3-0 in Cuddy Arena. Wingate won by scores of 27-25, 25-18 and 28-26 to improve to 25-5 overall and 17-4 in the SAC. The Lions fall to 7-21 overall and 6-15 in the conference.
Wingate's victory over Mars Hill, along with losses from Queens and Lincoln Memorial guaranteed the Bulldogs can do no worse than a share of the league title. The Bulldogs, Royals and Railsplitters entered the final weekend in a three-way tie for first. Wingate can clinch an outright league title with a victory in Saturday's regular season finale.
"This was a great night for several reasons," head coach
Shelton Collier says. "We had an awesome crowd, were able to honor three seniors, we won an important, hard-fought match and we are now one step closer to achieving one of our goals of being regular season champions. Katie and Oakley were both really good tonight, which was great to see. Our players are excited about the win and looking forward to our final regular season home match."
Junior outside hitter
Katie Bludau (Seabrook, Texas) had 11 kills, eight digs and four aces to lead the Wingate attack. Sophomore outside hitter
Oakley Attaway (Orlando, Fla.) added 11 kills and five digs, hitting .348 on the night while senior right-side hitter
Abby Saehler (Iowa City, Iowa) contributed 11 kills, eight digs and two blocks. Sophomore middle blocker
Anna Holmquist (Lincoln, Nebr.) had five kills in eight swings, hitting .625 on the night. Freshman setter
Rachel Alles (Tinley Park, Ill.) piled up 37 assists and 17 digs, while classmate
Treslyn Ortiz (Texas City, Texas) collected 21 digs.
Mary Kate Griffin had eight kills and15 digs to lead the Mars Hill attack.
Lauren Hochstetler added six kills and 11 digs, while
Rebecca Butler,
Sally Anne Johnson and
Maddie Spurgeon contributed five kills apiece.
Andie Russell had 23 assists and 11 digs, while
Victoria Kaiser also picked up 11 digs for the Lions.
A 4-0 run gave the Bulldogs a 10-8 lead in set one, getting a Saehler kill and Holmquist ace. A kill and an ace from Attaway pushed the lead to four, but a pair of kills from Spurgeon helped Mars Hill tie it at 14. An ace from
Elizabeth Kaeser gave the Lions a 17-15 advantage. Wingate scored the next three points, taking an 18-17 lead on a Saehler kill. A Bludau ace gave the 'Dogs a two-point advantage, but kills from Hochstetler and Spurgeon tied it at 22, while a block from Johnson gave MHU a 24-23 lead. A Mars Hill error tied it at 24, but another Spurgeon kill put the Lions back on top. Wingate staved off another set point when a Saehler kill made it 25-25, while a Bludau kill gave the Bulldogs a 26-25 lead. A Mars Hill error ended the set. Wingate hit .364 in the opening frame, with 15 kills and three errors in 33 attacks.
Kills from Saehler and Holmquist, along with a Bludau ace helped Wingate take an 11-6 lead in set two. Two Attaway kills and an Alles ace, followed by a Bludau block put the 'Dogs on top 16-10. Four straight Wingate errors got the Lions within two at 16-14, but a Bludau kill and Ortiz ace, along with a Holmquist kill made it 20-14. Back-to-back Bludau kills, along with another Holmquist kill made it 24-18. Bludau ended the set with an ace.
The third set stayed tight until a 4-0 Mars Hill run gave the Lions a 17-14 advantage, capped by a Johnson kill. Wingate responded with a 5-0 run to regain the lead. Kills from Saehler and
Lynnlee Mather (McDonough, Ga.) tied it at 17, while a kill and a block from Bludau gave the Bulldogs a 19-17 lead. An ace from Kaeser tied it at 22, while a kill and an ace from Griffin gave the Lions a 24-23 lead. An Attaway kill tied it, but Butler put the Lions back on top with a kill. Saehler staved off another set point with a kill, but another Johnson kill gave Mars Hill a 26-25 lead. Bludau responded with a kill to tie it, while a Mars Hill error gave Wingate a 27-26 advantage. Bludau ended the match with a kill.
The Bulldogs hit .220 on the night, with 45 kills and 16 errors in 132 attacks. Mars Hill had 32 kills and 18 errors in 130 attacks, hitting .108. Bludau led Wingate with a pair of solo blocks, while also collecting four of Wingate's 12 aces on the night. Alles, Attaway and Ortiz added two aces each for the Bulldogs.
Wingate is back in action Saturday, hosting Tusculum at 2 p.m. in the regular season finale. A victory would give the Bulldogs the outright regular season SAC title.
