Harrogate, Tenn.----The top-seeded and 14th-ranked Wingate University Bulldogs were firing on all cylinders Saturday afternoon, hitting .314 and notching nine blocks to hold fourth-seeded Tusculum College to an .074 hitting percentage en route to a 3-0 win in Saturday’s Food Lion South Atlantic Conference tournament semi-final contest. Wingate won by scores of 25-13, 25-17 and 25-15 to improve to 29-0 overall. Wingate reaches the SAC title match for the seventh straight year, looking to win its sixth straight title. The Bulldogs have won 17 straight SAC tournament matches and 23 of their last 25 since 2003. Tusculum falls to 18-12 overall.

Redshirt sophomore right-side hitter Anna Hilton (Hickory, N.C.) had 10 kills, eight digs, five blocks and a .400 hitting percentage to lead the Wingate attack. Freshman middle blocker Lexi Potter (North Liberty, Iowa) added nine kills and seven blocks, hitting .500 on the afternoon. Junior middle blocker Grace Krauser (Louisville, Ky.) added seven kills, while sophomore outside hitter Cory McGowan (Pittsburgh, Pa.) had six kills and a .600 hitting percentage. Senior setter Liz Willis (Raleigh, N.C.) had 35 assists, while senior libero Maggie Malone (Chicago, Ill.) collected 18 digs.
 
"We were extremely prepared and motivated for Tusculum and it showed with one of our best performances of the season,” Wingate head coach Shelton Collier says. “We had some very impressive offensive performances and did a great job with our defense against their top players.”
 
Freshman middle blocker Taylor Boone (Burnsville, N.C.) and junior outside hitter Bailee Price (Fort Wayne, Ind.) had six kills each to lead the Pioneers, with Price adding 10 digs. Sophomore setter Ashley Sarmiento (Dayton, Ohio) handed out 21 assists, while sophomore libero Caitlyn Dean (Fort Wayne, Ind.) notched 17 digs.
 
A 6-0 run gave the Bulldogs a 14-6 lead in the opening frame. McGowan and Potter capped the spurt with back-to-back blocks. Two kills and a block from Potter, along with a kill from freshman outside hitter Susie Murach (Burke, Va.), made the score 20-8. The lead would remain in double figures the rest of the way, with Potter capping set one with a kill. Wingate hit .346 in the first set, while Tusculum hit -.030.
 
Wingate came out hot in the second frame as well, taking a 10-4 lead on kills from Krauser and Hilton. A kill from junior outside hitter Natalie Gaudreau (Venice, Fla.) trimmed the TC deficit to five at 12-7. The ‘Dogs answered with seven straight points to take a commanding 19-7 advantage. Hilton started the flurry with back-to-back kills, while teaming with Potter for back-to-black blocks to cap the explosion. A kill from junior outside hitter Sam Underwood (Muncie, Ind.) and a Dean ace capped a 6-0 Tusculum run that made the tally 23-17. Krauser answered with a kill, while an ace from senior outside hitter Janice Ehorn (Orange, Conn.) finished off the second frame.
 
The Bulldogs used a 3-0 run to take a 9-5 lead in the third frame, highlighted by a kill and a block from Krauser. A kill from Price and block from Boone trimmed the lead to three at 13-10. Kills from Hilton, Krauser and Murach pushed the lead back to six at 16-10. Another 3-0 run for the Bulldogs, highlighted by a kill and ace from Murach, made the margin 20-12. The Pioneers would get no closer than six the rest of the way. Potter and Ehorn made the score 24-15 with a block, while Potter finished the match with a kill.
 
Wingate hit .314 for the match, with 40 kills and only eight errors in 102 attacks. Tusculum had 26 kills and 18 errors in 108 attacks to hit .074. Freshman defensive specialist Stephanie Tassone (Chicago, Ill.) had a match-high three aces to lead the Bulldogs.
 
Wingate will play in Sunday’s championship match at 2 p.m. The Bulldogs will take on the winner of the Catawba-Mars Hill contest. Tusculum will wait to hear its postseason fate during Sunday’s NCAA Tournament selection show, which will take place at 10 p.m. The Pioneers were ranked sixth in the most recent Southeast Region poll.

(Wingate University assistant SID Hugh Patton wrote this article. Patton is a 2006 Wingate graduate with a B.A. degree in Communication Studies.)