Wingate Clinches SAC Volleyball Championship With Win Over Newberry

Newberry, S.C.----The Wingate University Bulldog volleyball team clinched their second consecutive South Atlantic Conference regular season title by defeating the Newberry College Indians 3-0 (30-22, 30-24, 30-18) Tuesday night. With the victory, the Bulldogs improve to 28-1 on the year and 12-0 in the SAC. They have won 19 consecutive matches. Newberry falls to 17-8 overall and 7-7 in the conference.

Wingate freshman middle blocker Stormi Gale (Richmond, Texas) led the way with 15 kills. Fellow freshmen Heather Myklebust (Sugar Land, Texas) and Rebecca Bloemer (Louisville, Ky.) chipped in with 12 and 11 kills, respectively. Bulldog senior setter Melissa DeLuca (Bahama, N.C.) led the way with 42 assists. Junior libero Chelsea Cancelliere (Richboro, Pa.) had a team-high 14 digs for the visitors.

Priscila Sales led the Newberry attack with 16 kills. Brianna Blakely had 22 assists while Christy Stegall had 12 digs.

"In Newberry's previous three matches, they have beaten the number two, three and four teams in the South Atlantic Conference," Wingate head coach Shelton Collier noted. "We were prepared for a difficult match. We played at a very high level; we made very few errors. I'm pleased to clinch the SAC regular season title."

Wingate returns to action Friday night, when they host Carson-Newman College at 7 p.m. There will be a ceremony before the match to honor the three seniors on the team.

The Bulldogs will complete their regular season Saturday, when they host Lincoln Memorial University at 6 p.m. During the LMU match, the Bulldogs will be hosting the "Dig for the Cure" night. The Indians will travel to Benedict College Thursday for a 6 p.m. start.