Charlotte, N.C.----The 25th-ranked Wingate University Bulldogs opened the 2019 season with a pair of sweeps Friday afternoon on day one of the 2019 Queens Fall Classic. Wingate started the day with a 3-0 (25-12, 25-16, 25-18) victory over Belmont Abbey College, while capping opening day with a 3-0 (25-21, 25-18, 25-16) win over North Greenville University. The defending SAC and region champion Bulldogs start their season 2-0.

NOTES

- The Bulldogs start the season 2-0 for the 13th straight year
- Wingate opens its season in Charlotte for the fourth straight year
- The 'Dogs are a perfect 12-0 all-time in the Queens Fall Classic
- WU moves to 379-35 overall since the start of the 2007 season
- Five players made their Wingate debut Friday
- Rachel Alles notched a double-double in match one; Shannon Kasprak had one in the second match
- 12 different Bulldogs recorded a kill Friday
- First two sweeps of the year after piling up 19 sweeps last season
- WU moves to 6-0 all-time vs. Belmont Abbey and 2-0 against North Greenville

MATCH ONE | #25 Wingate 3, Belmont Abbey 0

KEY STATS

- WU hit .227 on the match, holding BAC to a .022 hitting percentage
- Belmont Abbey did not have more than seven kills in any set
- The 'Dogs doubled-up the Crusaders in total kills (38-19)
- Wingate piled up 15 aces compared to two from Belmont Abbey
- The Bulldogs collected 49 digs while the Crusaders picked up 36 digs
- WU had 11 or more kills in every frame

KEY BULLDOGS

- Molly Lambillotte had eight kills and 13 digs, hitting .429
- Marianna Warren added eight kills, three blocks and two aces in her Bulldog debut
- Sophie Schaff contributed six kills and six blocks
- Anne Abernathy added five kills; Maggie Young registered four kills and five blocks
- Rachel Alles compiled 13 assists, 11 digs, five aces, four kills and three blocks
- Shannon Kasprak added 13 assists, four digs and two kills
- Treslyn Ortiz picked up 12 digs, adding four aces and four assists

FIRST SET

- Wingate used Warren's strong serving to go on a 9-0 run to take a 12-2 lead
- Schaff had two kills and a block in the spurt, Warren added two aces
- A kill and a block from Abernathy, followed by three straight Alles aces made it 20-5
- Kills from Schaff and Warren put WU on top 24-11; a Belmont Abbey error ended the set
- WU hit .231 in the opening frame with 11 kills and five errors
- The Crusaders hit -.091 with five kills and seven errors

SECOND SET

- Two Warren kills and an Ortiz ace gave the 'Dogs an early 5-1 advantage
- Two Lambillotte kills and a Schaff kill made it 12-5
- An Andie Meredith kill got Belmont Abbey within three at 15-12, but Wingate scored the next four
- Two Warren kills, along with a kill and a block from Schaff put the 'Dogs on top 19-12
- Back-to-back Kasey Eastland aces, along with another Schaff kill made it 23-14
- An Alles kill put WU on top 24-15, a Crusader service error ended the frame
- The 'Dogs had a match-high 15 kills against four errors, hitting .314
- The Crusaders hit .059 with seven kills and five errors

THIRD SET

- Wingate jumped out to a 9-2 lead, getting two Ortiz aces along with two kills and a block from Young
- Reese Blackley's kill gave the Bulldogs a 12-3 advantage
- BAC got back within five, but a Kasprak kill and Alles ace made it 19-12
- A Schaff block, Kasprak ace and Alles kill put the Bulldogs on top 24-16
- Warren and Schaff teamed for a block to end the match
- WU had 12 kills and seven errors in the frame, hitting .071
- Belmont Abbey hit .061 with seven kills and five errors

MATCH TWO | #25 Wingate 3, North Greenville 0

KEY STATS

- Wingate hit .202 with 39 kills and 16 errors; NGU had 25 kills and 21 errors to hit .036
- WU had 57 digs compared to North Greenville's 50
- The 'Dogs had six blocks compared to three from the Crusaders
- The teams combined for eight aces and 21 service errors
- Wingate held North Greenville below a .070 hitting percentage all three frames

KEY BULLDOGS

- Schaff had seven kills in two sets of action, hitting .294
- Lambillotte added six kills and eight digs
- Abernathy contributed five kills in two sets of action
- Young and Lynnlee Mather added four kills apiece, with Young adding three blocks
- Kasprak handed out 17 assists to go along with 13 digs, two kills and two aces
- Ortiz piled up 16 digs, eight assists and two aces
- Maggie Mullen contributed 10 digs and six assists

FIRST SET

- An Abby Pyke aces gave the Crusaders an early 9-3 lead
- Wingate scored seven of the next eight to tie it, getting two kills and two blocks from Alles in the spurt
- An Emma Pepper kill put NGU on top 14-12, but kills from Abernathy and Young tied it
- Blackley's kill gave WU a 17-16 advantage, while a Kasprak ace made it 19-16
- A Mather kill and Ortiz ace put the 'Dogs on top 23-20
- Back-to-back NGU errors ended the set
- Wingate hit .152 with 11 kills and six errors in the first frame
- North Greenville had 10 kills and eight errors, hitting .056

SECOND SET

- Two Mather kills and a Hanna Knaley kill gave the Bulldogs an early 6-4 advantage
- An ace from Eastland capped a 3-0 run that made it 15-11
- Kills from Knaley and Lambillotte pushed the lead to six at 18-12
- Kills from Lambillotte, Schaff and Carley Faulkner made it 23-15; an NGU error ended the set
- Wingate had 15 kills and four errors to hit .244 in the frame
- North Greenville had 10 kills and seven errors, hitting .067

THIRD SET

- Kills from Kasprak and Schaff sparked a 4-0 run that broke open a 10-all tie to put WU on top by four
- The 'Dogs added a 6-0 run to take a 22-13 advantage
- Young, Abernathy and Blackley each had a kill in the flurry while Kasprak capped it with an ace
- Young's kill made it 24-16; Abernathy and Young teamed for a block to finish the day
- Wingate had 13 kills and six errors to hit .194 in the final stanza
- NGU hit -.032 with five kills and six errors

UP NEXT

- Wingate wraps up the Queens Fall Classic Saturday with two more matches in Charlotte
- The 'Dogs face Converse at 10 a.m., then take on Augusta at 2:30 p.m.
- The Bulldogs play their first home match Tuesday at 7 p.m., hosting Limestone on ESPN3