Charlotte, N.C.----The 10-time defending South Atlantic Conference regular season champion Wingate University Bulldogs opened the 2016 season with a pair of victories in the Queens Volleyball Tournament at the Levine Center Saturday evening. Wingate opened the season with a 3-0 win against Belmont Abbey, while defeating 2015 Peach Belt champion USC Aiken 3-1 in the night cap. The Bulldogs start the season 2-0, while Belmont Abbey is 0-3 and USC Aiken is 3-1.

"This was a very good opening day for our team," head coach Shelton Collier says. "We played well in our win against Belmont Abbey and really had to elevate our game to beat USC Aiken in the evening match. These were two very important matches for us and it was great to see us make so much progress on our first day of competition.

Match One: Wingate 3, Belmont Abbey 0

All-American middle blocker Abby Saehler (Iowa City, Iowa) had 13 kills, eight digs and two blocks to lead the Wingate attack. Junior outside hitter Katie Bludau (Seabrook, Texas) added 11 kills with a .320 hitting percentage, while sophomore outside hitter Taylor Williams (Keedysville, Md.) contributed 10 kills and five blocks. Sophomore middle blocker Anna Holmquist (Lincoln, Nebr.) hit .545 with six kills in two sets of action, adding four blocks while freshman setter Rachel Alles (Tinley Park, Ill.) collected 27 assists, nine digs and three kills in two sets of action. Junior setter Rachel Lods (Lancaster, Calif.) handed out 17 assists in one set, while junior libero Kori Adams (Ayden, N.C.) collected 11 digs.

Kills from Holmquist and Saehler, along with a Williams block gave the Bulldogs a 9-7 lead in the opening set. A block from Aimee Cloninger gave the Crusaders an 11-10 advantage, but kills from Williams and Alles put Wingate back on top. A pair of Holmquist kills, along with kills from Williams, Saehler and Bludau put Wingate on top 19-14. A Williams kill and Bludau block made it 24-19, while another block from Bludau and Tyler Smith (Aiken, S.C,) capped the set.

A pair of blocks from Williams, along with a Saehler kill gave Wingate an 8-4 lead in the second frame. A pair of Bludau kills, along with two aces from Alles pushed the lead to six at 15-9. Two kills and a block from Saehler, along with a kill from freshman middle blocker Lynnlee Mather (McDonough, Ga.) made it 21-12. Another Mather kill, followed by a Holmquist kill made it 24-17, while a kill from Williams ended the set.

Two kills from Williams, to go along with kills from Bludau and Saehler gave the 'Dogs an 8-4 advantage in the third frame. Belmont Abbey tied it at 12 on an ace from Mackenzie Chrapliwy, but back-to-back Bludau kills put the Bulldogs on top by two. Three Saehler kills, along with a Mather kill and Williams block made it 21-15, while kills from Williams and Lods made it 24-16. A block from Lods and Smith ended the match.

Wingate hit .327 on the day, with 51 kills and 14 errors in 113 attacks. Belmont Abbey had 24 kills and 16 errors in 99 attacks, hitting .081. Williams and Smith led the way with a match-high five blocks each, while Alles had two of Wingate's four aces.

Match Two: Wingate 3, USC Aiken 1

Saehler had 17 kills, 11 digs and two blocks, hitting .378 for the match. Bludau added 12 kills, nine digs and two blocks, while Smith and sophomore outside hitter Oakley Attaway (Bell Isle, Fla.) contributed 10 kills apiece. Smith hit .421 while adding six blocks. Alles handed out 47 assists while adding six digs and five assists, while Adams piled up 18 digs. Freshman Treslyn Ortiz (Texas City, Texas) added 17 digs for the Bulldogs.

The Pacers used a 10-0 run in the opening set, taking a 10-2 lead on three consecutive kills from Shawn Hotson. Back-to-back Bludau kills got Wingate within five, but another Hotson kill made it 15-9. The Bulldogs responded with a 5-0 run, getting two kills from Attaway to make it 15-14. A Bludau kill tied the frame at 18, while a Saehler kill put the 'Dogs on top. Alles followed with a kill, while a block from Smith and Bludau made it 21-18. A pair of Smith kills, followed by an Adams ace put Wingate on top 24-20. Attaway capped the first frame with a kill. The Bulldogs hit .325 in the opening set, with 16 kills and just three errors.

Wingate used a 6-0 run to take a 9-4 lead in the second set. Bludau started the flurry with back-to-back kills, while Smith capped it with a kill. A pair of Kassy Johannsen kills got the Pacers within two at 14-12, but kills from Bludau and Saehler stretched the advantage back to four. A Block from Taylor Stratton got Aiken within a point at 19-18, but kills from Attaway and Saehler, followed by an ace from Ortiz put the 'Dogs on top 22-19. Kills from Saehler and Smith made it 24-21, while a block from Smith and Alles gave Wingate a 2-0 lead in the match. The Bulldogs hit .333 in set two, with 17 kills and five errors in 40 attacks.

A Saehler kill and Alles block helped Wingate take a 9-6 lead in the third set, but kills from Stratton and Julia Forster, along with a Bulldog error put the Pacers on top 11-10. Kills from Hotson and Forster, followed by a Hotson ace gave USC Aiken a 17-14 lead. A Smith kill and Bludau ace cut the deficit to one, while a Saehler kill made it 17-17. The teams traded points until a Saehler kill made it 20-20. The Pacers answered with a Stratton kill and back-to-back Wingate errors to go on top 23-20. Another Wingate error made it 24-20, while an ace from Rebecca Martinez ended the set.

USC Aiken jumped out to a 4-0 lead in set four, but a kill and a block from Saehler made it 5-5. Back-to-back Smith kills put Wingate on top 10-8, but kills from Stratton and Johannsen put Aiken back ahead 13-12. Another kill from Stratton pushed the Pacer advantage to three at 15-12, but an Attaway kill made it 15-13. Another Stratton kill made it 17-14, but a Saehler kill and Mather ace cut the lead to one. Back-to-back USC Aiken errors made it 19-19, while a block from Smith and Alles put Wingate on top by one. Smith followed with a kill to push the lead to two, but a Forster kill made it 21-20. Attaway responded with a kill, while back-to-back USC Aiken errors made it 24-20. Attaway ended the match with a kill.

Wingate hit .237 for the match, with 54 kills and 18 errors in 152 attacks. USC Aiken had 57 kills and 26 errors in 160 attacks, hitting .194. Smith led all players with six blocks, followed by Alles with five and Holmquist with four. Ortiz and Adams contributed two aces each for the Bulldogs, who collected seven in the match.

Wingate is back in action Tuesday, hosting a tri-match against UNC Pembroke and Erskine. The Bulldogs face UNC Pembroke at 3:30 p.m. and Erskine at 7:30 p.m.