Wingate Claims NCAA Volleyball Southeast Region Title

WINGATE, N.C. - The top-seeded and ninth-ranked Wingate University Bulldogs bounced back after an opening-set loss, defeating the second-seeded and 17th-ranked Armstrong Atlantic Pirates 3-1 in the NCAA Southeast Regional championship match. The Bulldogs won by scores of 20-25, 26-24, 25-20 and 25-18 to improve to 32-2 overall, advancing to the Elite Eight for the second straight year and third time in four years. The Pirates end their season at 32-2 overall.

The win gives the Bulldogs their 14th NCAA Tournament victory, more than the rest of the SAC schools combined. Wingate advances to the Elite Eight for the third time in program history. The Bulldogs are still the only team in SAC history to win a regional title. Wingate has now defeated three top-20 opponents in the 2013 season. The Bulldogs have won 29 consecutive matches this season.

Senior All-American Anna Hilton (Hickory, N.C.) had 13 kills, 17 digs and seven blocks to lead the Wingate attack, hitting .387. Senior middle blocker Allison Rickher (Matthews, N.C.) added nine kills and seven blocks, hitting .400, while junior outside hitter Susie Murach (Burke, Va.) had nine kills, 13 digs and two blocks. Junior middle blocker Lexi Potter(North Liberty, Iowa) piled up nine kills and a career-high 10 blocks, while sophomore Shelly Stumpff (Iowa City, Iowa) had five kills, 10 digs, two blocks and two aces. Redshirt junior setter Alison Cooke (Davidson, N.C.) had 40 assists, 14 digs and five blocks, while junior libero Stephanie Tassone (Chicago, Ill.) had 10 digs.

"We are thrilled that we will be one of the teams in the Elite Eight in Iowa next week," head coach Shelton Collier says. "Armstrong Atlantic is a very good team, so it took a great performance by us to win this match. We certainly have had an incredible season and one of our primary goals was to win the regional and have a return trip to the Elite Eight. We are looking forward to playing Thursday."

Kristen Holmes had 14 kills to lead the Armstrong attack, hitting .333, while Emily Wylie added 14 kills for the Pirates.Taylor Permenter added 10 kills, while Jessica Santaniello had nine kills and 23 digs. Stephanie Sfara had nine kills and 17 digs while Megan Pando had 49 assists and 14 digs. Morgan Hill collected 17 digs.

The A block and a kill from Rickher gave Wingate a 13-11 lead in the first set. Armstrong answered with a 5-0 run to take a three-point lead. Wylie had two kills in the flurry, while Pando added an ace. Kills from Sfara and Wylie made it 20-16. Potter cut the lead to three with a kill, but a Permenter kill made it 23-19. Santaniello added a kill to make it 24-20, while a Wingate error finished the opening set.

A kill and two blocks from Potter gave the Bulldogs a 10-5 lead in set two. Wylie and Holmes connected on kills to cut the lead to three, but a Potter block and Abby Saehler (Iowa City, Iowa) kill made it 16-11. Wingate led 19-14 on another Saehler kill, but a 5-0 run cut the lead to one. Permenter had a pair of kills to make it 20-19. A block from Hilton and Rickher, along with an Armstrong error gave the 'Dogs a 24-21 lead. Back-to-back Sfara kills, along with a kill from Holmes tied the set at 24. An Armstrong error put Wingate on top by one, while another error capped the second frame, tying the match at one.

Kills from Santaniello and Wylie gave the Pirates a 13-10 lead in set three. Hilton answered with two kills and a block to tie it. A block from Wylie and two Wingate errors pushed the Armstrong lead back to three at 17-14. The Bulldogs tied it at 18 on a Potter block and Stumpff ace. Wingate took a 20-19 lead on a Murach kill, but a Holmes kill tied it at 20. The Bulldogs responded by scoring the last five points of the set. Rickher started it with a kill, while blocks from Murach, Hilton and Rickher made it 24-20. An Armstrong error capped the set, giving Wingate a 2-1 lead in the match.

A block from Potter and Cooke, along with a Rickher kill gave the Bulldogs a 12-7 lead in set four. Kills from Sfara and Wylie cut the lead to two at 13-11, but a Hilton kill and Potter block made it 17-13. A kill from Cooke and ace from Stumpff made it 20-14. Murach slammed home a kill to make it 24-17, while a Hilton kill capped the match.

Wingate hit .203 on the match, with 47 kills and 15 errors in 158 attacks. Armstrong had 57 kills and 38 errors in 179 attacks, hitting .106. The Bulldogs piled up a season-high 18 blocks. Potter's 10 blocks were a match high, while Rickher and Hilton added seven each.

The Bulldogs will face the winner of the Atlantic Regional. The regional title match Saturday night features top-seeded Wheeling-Jesuit and third-seeded California (Pa.). The national quarterfinal match is Thursday at 8:30 p.m. in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

All-Tournament Team
Shannon Gillespie, Anderson
Hailey Pittman, Anderson
Abby Meyers, Flagler
Emilee Taylor, Flagler
Kristen Holmes, Armstrong
Megan Pando, Armstrong
Jessica Santaniello, Armstrong
Emily Wylie, Armstrong
Alison Cooke, Wingate
Anna Hilton, Wingate
Allison Rickher, Wingate
Stephanie Tassone, Wingate

- Wingate media relations