Wingate, Catawba, Lincoln Memorial Post Wins In NCAA Volleyball Southeast Regional Tournament

WINGATE, N.C. -- Wingate University picked up its first-ever NCAA Division II volleyball post-season victory, blanking Anderson (S.C.) University 3-0 in the opening round of the Southeast Regional. The Bulldogs are the hosts of this year's event in Cuddy Arena on the Wingate campus.

Wingate won the NCAA regional quarterfinal contest 25-23, 26-24 and 25-18 to capture its 29th consecutive victory. The Bulldogs improve to 31-1 overall on the season. Anderson completes the 2008 campaign 24-14 overall. Both teams won their respective conference tournament titles this season.

Bulldog senior outside hitter Kathryn Reddick (Franklinton, N.C.) hit .450 to lead both offenses Friday night. One of two four-year letter winners on the Wingate roster, Reddick had 11 kills, two errors and 20 total attacks.

Wingate sophomore middle blocker Stormi Gale (Richmond, Texas) shared match-high honors with 14 kills. Classmate Lauren Billo (Orland Park, Ill.) contributed 12 kills for the victorious Bulldogs.

Chelsea Cancelliere (Richboro, Pa.) led the Wingate defense. The junior defensive specialist took match-high honors with 16 digs. Bulldog freshman libero Maggie Malone (Chicago, Ill.) added 14 digs. Wingate freshman setter Liz Willis (Raleigh, N.C.) had 40 assists and 11 digs to post her 10th double-double this season.

Wingate University's Stormi Gale had 14 kills in Friday's win over Anderson. (Photo by Mike Slade)

For Anderson, senior outside hitter Amanda Edwards (Azle, Texas) led the way with 14 kills. She was one of two Trojans with a double-double, as she also posted 10 digs. Edwards recorded a team-best .312 hitting percentage (14 kills, four errors, 32 total attacks).

Trojan sophomore outside hitter Jamie Lancaster (Fountain Inn, S.C.) added 12 kills and 14 digs. Sophomore setter Lindsay Doggett (Jacksonville, Ala.) had 35 assists and eight digs for AU, while sophomore libero Adria Mullaney (Tampa, Fla.) recorded 13 digs.

The Bulldogs moved quickly out of the gates, hitting .417 in the first set (18 kills, three errors, 36 total attacks). A Billo kill gave Wingate the lead for good at 13-12. Five different players had a kill for the Bulldogs in the first stanza.

In game two, Reddick topped the charts with five kills. She hit .556 in the second frame. Anderson had 20 kills in the second set, compared to 18 for Wingate. Edwards had 10 kills in the second set. Doggett passed out 18 assists.

Wingate bolted to a 7-1 lead in set three and never looked back. Bulldog freshman outside hitter Janice Ehorn (Orange, Conn.) had four kills in the third set. Both teams cooled down in the third set, as Wingate hit .208 (17 kills, seven errors, 48 total attacks). Anderson hit .000 with seven kills, seven errors and 42 total swings in the third set.

"My first thought should be that I am pleased we won," Wingate head coach Shelton Collier says. "However, I must say my most prevalent emotion is…we had the best crowd for any volleyball match in the history of the program."

Collier believes the fans gave the Bulldog players additional incentive. "The energy (in Cuddy Arena) was awesome…by far the loudest and the most influential crowd we have ever had," the South Atlantic Conference Coach of the Year acknowledges.

"With regards to our performance…we really played some high-level volleyball at times," Collier notes. "Reddick, Gale and Billo had great matches. We started three freshmen and two sophomores tonight. They played with much composure."

Wingate concluded the evening with a .294 hitting percentage. The Bulldog offensive stat line included 53 kills, 13 errors and 136 total attacks. Wingate's defense was solid, with four players collecting double-figure digs. In addition to Cancelliere, Malone and Willis, Bulldog junior defensive specialist Brittany Horner (Roxboro, N.C.) joined the club with 10 digs.

Anderson hit .182 for the match with 41 kills, 17 errors and 132 total attacks. The Trojans had 63 digs (compared to 66 for the Bulldogs) with four student-athletes reaching 10 or more. Wingate won the blocking battle with two block solos and 12 block assists. Anderson managed only one block solo and two block assists.

NOTES: The Bulldogs are 64-3 overall dating back to the beginning of the 2007 season, including a 31-1 mark in Cuddy Arena during the same time period. Wingate will face fellow SAC member Catawba College at 7:30 p.m. Saturday in the second of two semi-final contests. Three league schools (Wingate, Catawba, Lincoln Memorial) join Armstrong Atlantic State University of the Peach Belt Conference in the regional final four.

Catawba 3, Francis Marion 1

WINGATE, N.C. -- Catawba College worked overtime Friday, taking a hard-fought 3-1 victory over Francis Marion University in the quarterfinals of the 2008 NCAA Division II Southeast Regional tournament. The final three sets went extra innings, as number four seed Catawba (21-10 overall) prevailed 25-20, 27-29, 28-26, 29-27 to advance to Saturday night's semi-finals at 7:30 p.m. Number five seed Francis Marion completes the 2008 season 23-9 overall.

Catawba senior outside hitter Melissa Griffith (Williamsburg, Va.) had a huge night, posting a super-sized double-double with a career-high 30 kills. She added 17 digs. She also recorded a match-best .347 hitting percentage (30 kills, five errors, 72 total attacks).

Catawba's Melissa Griffith had a career-high 30 kills against Francis Marion on Friday. (Photo by Mike Slade)

Griffith's classmate and (first) namesake Melissa Powers (Bennett, N.C.) had 20 kills for the victors. The South Atlantic Conference Player of the Year also had nine digs and four block assists. Freshman outside hitter Shay Meeks (Kings Mountain, N.C.) contributed 11 kills for Catawba.

Freshman setter Megan Courson (Statesville, N.C.) handed out 55 assists for the Tribe, while junior libero Mai Zoua Lo (Hickory, N.C.) topped the match charts with 38 digs. Courson added eight digs and two block assists to her statistical ledger.

For Francis Marion, freshman outside hitter Amanda Mitchell (Farragut, Tenn.) led the Patriots with 18 kills. Mitchell's .275 hitting percentage included 18 kills, four errors and 51 total attacks.

Two student-athletes recorded double-doubles for the Peach Belt Conference members. FMU freshman outside hitter Ashlyn Underhill (Easley, S.C.) had 16 kills and 15 digs. Patriot senior setter Jenna Kaiser (Broomfield, Colo.) dished out 48 assists and contributed 17 digs.

"I am very proud of Melissa Griffith," Catawba head coach Ginger Hamric says. For her to get 30 kills and hit nearly .350 from the outside is outstanding. I was also pleased with Erin O'Reilly's blocking. We are very excited to get the win."

Both teams struggled in a very tight set four. Catawba hit only .177 (18 kills, seven errors, 62 total attacks), while Francis Marion managed only .151 (16 kills, eight errors, 53 total attacks). Griffith was money when the chips were on the table, posting 11 kills and five digs in the fourth and final frame. Meeks ended the match with a kill.

In set three, Griffith had 10 kills and only one error in 16 swings (.562). Thanks to her efforts, Catawba had its best hitting set of the evening. The Indians posted a .273 hitting percentage, with 19 kills, four errors and 55 total attacks.

Francis Marion also had its best offensive set. The Patriots hit at a .306 clip in set three with 18 kills, three errors and 49 total attacks. FMU sophomore middle blocker Mallory Eggert (Lake Elmo, Minn.) had seven of her 11 kills in the third set. Eggert ended the evening with a .280 hitting percentage (11 kills, four errors and 25 total attacks).

The Patriots won set two 29-27, hitting .225 during the frame (15 kills, six errors and 40 total attacks). Mitchell had six kills, while Underhill contributed four terminations. Kaiser's pinpoint passing was a key, as she dished out 12 assists.

Catawba took the first set 25-20. Griffith and Meeks had five kills each, while Courson dished out 11 assists in the opening frame. The Indians trailed 12-8 and 14-10, but rallied to take the victory.

A 7-1 run gave Catawba a 17-15 lead. Back-to-back Francis Marion attack errors gave Catawba the edge after the score was knotted for the final time at 15-15. Powers had two kills in the important 7-1 run.

Catawba hit .179 on the evening, with 64 kills, 25 errors and 218 total attacks. Francis Marion posted a .192 hitting percentage, thanks to 58 kills, 21 errors and 193 total attacks. Five Patriots had double-digit digs. FMU sophomore defensive specialist Kelsie Deaton (Martinsville, Ind.) had a team-high 28 digs.

NOTES: Griffith's 30 kills is a career-high and the fifth-best match total in Catawba College history. The 30-kill effort moves Griffith into second on the Tribe's all-time list with 1,582 career kills (behind teammate Powers). Catawba will face the Wingate/Anderson (S.C.) winner Saturday night at 7:30 p.m.

Lincoln Memorial 3, Carson-Newman 1

WINGATE, N.C. -- The Lincoln Memorial University volleyball team recorded the first upset of the 2008 NCAA Division II Southeast Regional tournament, capturing a 3-1 first round victory over Carson-Newman College in Cuddy Arena. The number seven seed LMU Railsplitters are 22-14 overall, while number two seed Carson-Newman ends its season 24-15 overall.

Lincoln Memorial did not exhibit any first-visit-to-the-NCAA-tournament jitters, as both senior outside hitter Amanda Horenkamp (Murfreesboro, Tenn.) and sophomore outside hitter Ashley Knight (Palm Harbor, Fla.) posted double-doubles. Horenkamp had 13 kills and 17 digs, while Knight notched 13 kills and 15 digs.

LMU sophomore setter Lauren Kiwacka (Tipp City, Ohio) was solid, dishing out 45 assists. She filled out her statistics ledger with 13 digs, five kills and three service aces. Railsplitter junior libero Alicia MacIntyre (Muncie, Ind.) collected a match-high 29 digs.

For Carson-Newman, two players had 15 kills each: senior right side hitter Kelsey Fleck (Celina, Ohio) and junior middle hitter Katie Troyer (Plain City, Ohio). Fleck posted the top hitting percentage for either team, as she hit at a .371 clip (15 kills, two errors, 35 total attacks).

Eagle junior setter Stephanie Cutter (Murfreesboro, Tenn.) had a double-double with 29 assists and 18 digs. Carson-Newman senior libero Haley Bush (Spartanburg, S.C.) collected a team-best 24 digs. The Eagles were making their first NCAA appearance since 2002.

"We are a blue collar team…we play point-to-point and play-to-play," Lincoln Memorial head coach Mike Smith says. "We have had our whole team together (for the last) two weeks. I think we are gelling as a team…we've come together at the right time."

Lincoln Memorial used a 9-2 run to take a 21-16 lead in the deciding fourth set. Horenkamp ended the flurry with a kill. Knight served three crucial points during the momentum swing.

In the tide-turning third set, Lincoln Memorial hit a match-best .353 (15 kills, three errors, 34 total attacks). The Railsplitters and the Eagles shared struggles in the second set, as both teams hit only .089 in the frame.

Carson-Newman won the first set 25-21, as the Eagles hit .208 (16, 6, 48) compared to LMU's .075 (10, 6, 53). Fleck had five kills in the opening frame, while Troyer and junior middle blocker Jessica Brady (Fruitland Park, Fla.) recorded four kills each.

Lincoln Memorial hit .194 for the afternoon, with 55 kills, 24 errors and 194 total attacks. Four players recorded double-digit digs, paced by MacIntyre's 29. The Railsplitters had 16 block assists.

Carson-Newman hit .148 Friday, with 55 kills, 27 errors and 189 total attacks. Eagle junior Jessica Schachleiter (Cincinnati, Ohio) joined Cutter in the double-double club, as she had 10 kills and 16 digs. All total, five C-N student-athletes had 10 or more digs. The Eagles had one solo block and 18 block assists.

Lincoln Memorial will look to play giant-killer again Saturday night, as the Railsplitters will face number three seed Armstrong Atlantic State University at 5 p.m. in Cuddy Arena. AASU rallied for a thrilling 3-2 victory over Lander University earlier Friday.

Smith knows his team faces challenges ahead. "They (AASU) are a big, physical team," Smith acknowledges. "They are very good team. We are going to have to bring it to them to have a chance."