Wingate, N.C.----The top-seeded and 20th-ranked Wingate University Bulldogs overcame an opening-set loss Friday night, rallying for a 3-1 victory over eighth-seeded Converse University in the quarterfinals of the 2024 NCAA Southeast Regional Volleyball Tournament in Cuddy Arena. Wingate prevailed 22-25, 25-17, 25-20 and 25-16 to improve to 29-2 overall, advancing to Saturday's regional semifinals to take on Augusta at 7 p.m. The Valkyries end their season at 23-10.

KEY STATS

- Wingate had 53 kills and 19 errors in 160 attacks, hitting .213
- Converse had 42 kills and 25 errors in 173 swings to hit .098
- The Bulldogs had 11 of the 16 blocks on the night
- The 'Dogs held a 13-5 advantage in aces
- Wingate had an 88-80 edge in digs
- WU piled up 16 kills in the third set, while hitting .333 in the final frame
- Converse had nine kills and nine errors in set four to hit .000

KEY BULLDOGS

- Emily Johnson hit .462 with 13 kills, six digs and six blocks to lead the Bulldogs
- Gabby Saye hit .500 with nine kills, six blocks and five digs
- Maya Van Heyst piled up nine kills, 13 digs, 23 assists, five aces and two blocks
- Sydney Morland added nine kills and five blocks on the night
- Zelasia Edwards contributed eight kills, 11 digs and two aces
- Katie Jamerson registered 16 assists, six digs and three aces
- Maddie Hoffman notched 24 digs, six assists and three aces
- Maggie Fillauer added 10 digs

SET ONE

- Kills from Morland and Jamerson gave the Bulldogs an early 7-4 lead
- An Alayah Robertson ace capped a 10-2 run that gave Converse a 14-9 advantage
- Ariel Bryant's kill made it 15-10
- A kill and two blocks from Johnson sparked a 4-0 run to cut the lead to one
- Kills from Saye and Morland, along with a Jamerson ace put the 'Dogs on top 19-18
- Kills from AC Garbade and Noemia Chiacchio put Converse back on top by one
- A service error tied it at 121, but back-to-back WU errors gave the Valkyries a 23-21 lead
- Johnson's kill cut the lead to one, but a Bryan kill made it 24-22
- A Wingate error ended the frame

SET TWO

- A Garbade kill put Converse on top 7-5 in the second
- Three Van Heyst aces sparked a 6-0 run to give Wingate a 13-8 lead
- A block and a kill from Johnson made it 16-9
- Kills from Morland and Edwards, along with a Jamerson ace gave Wingate a 20-13 advantage
- Back-to-back Morland kills made it 23-15; a Van Heyst kill made it 24-17
- Hoffman ended the set with an ace

SET THREE

- A kill and two blocks from Saye gave the Bulldogs a 7-4 lead in the third
- An Alayah Robertson kill cut the lead to one
- Van Heyst and Johnson had two kills each to push the lead back to three at 13-10
- A Chiacchio kill gave the Valkyries an 18-16 advantage
- Wingate scored the next four, taking a 20-18 lead on an Edwards ace and Lorna Stacherski kill
- Chiacchio's kill cut the lead to one, but kills from Morland, Johnson and Van Heyst made it 24-19
- Van Heyst ended the set with a kill, giving the 'Dogs a 2-1 lead in the match

SET FOUR

- Kills from Edwards and Saye gave the Bulldogs an 8-5 lead in the fourth
- A kill and a block from Morland stretched the lead to four
- Three Johnson kills and two Stacherski kills sparked a 6-0 run to make it 18-9
- A Megan Carpenter kill capped a 5-0 run, pulling Converse with four at 19-15
- Back-to-back Edwards kills gave the Bulldogs a 22-15 advantage
- A Morland kill and Jamerson ace made it 24-16; Morland and Van Heyst teamed for the match-ending block

UP NEXT

- Wingate will take on Augusta Saturday at 7 p.m. in the regional semifinals
- The match will take place in Cuddy Arena
- The winner advances to Sunday's regional title match
- The region title match is set for 3 p.m. Sunday in Cuddy Arena