#12 Wingate Holds Off Lions
The Mars Hill volleyball team lost to No. 12 Wingate 3-1 on Friday night in Stanford Arena. Wingate won by scores of 23-25 25-19, 25-22 and 25-22.
MARS HILL, N.C. - The Mars Hill volleyball team lost to No. 12 Wingate 3-1 on Friday night in Stanford Arena. Wingate won by scores of 23-25 25-19, 25-22 and 25-22. Mars Hill falls to 9-19 overall and 8-13 in the South Atlantic Conference while Wingate improves to 27-2 and 20-1 in league play.
Mars Hill was led by Rebecca Butler and Lauren Hochstetler with 12 kills each, followed by Mary Kate Griffin with 11 and Devon Felts with nine. Griffin had two aces, with Andie Russell recording 25 assists. Butler led the Lion defense with 15 digs, followed by 14 from Christen Nicholson and Hochstetler with 10.
Shelly Stumpff recorded a match-high 15 kills to lead Wingate, followed by Abby Saehler with 14, Lexi Potter with 13 and Susie Murach with 11. Stumpff recorded three aces, with two each from Murach and Allison Cooke. Murach had a match-high 18 digs, followed by Kori Adams with 15, Cooke with 14 and Cory McGowan with 13.
Wingate held a 14-11 lead before the Lions took an 18-17 lead on a Hochstetler kill. A kill from Felts tied the set at 22 before a Lion error gave Wingate a 23-22 lead. Mars Hill took the lead thanks to a pair of Wingate errors and finished off the set with a Hochstetler kill.
The Bulldogs led 14-7 before a pair of four point runs by each team gave the visitors a 20-11 lead. Mars Hill cut the lead to five, 23-18, but would get no closer as Wingate tied the match thanks to a 25-19 win.
The third set featured 10 ties and three lead changes with neither team owning more than a three point lead. Mars Hill held a 17-15 lead before consecutive Wingate kills tied the set at 17. After Butler tied the set at 20, Wingate would score four of the next five points and held off the Lions for a 25-22 victory.
In the fourth set, Wingate broke a 13-all tie with a 4-0 run to take a 17-13 lead. Mars Hill answered with five of the next six points to tie the set at 18. The teams traded points until a Hochstetler kill tied the set at 22. Wingate would take the lead on a Lion error and closed out the match with kills from Murach and Saehler.
Mars Hill will celebrate Senior Day tomorrow afternoon against Coker in the regular season finale at 2 p.m. Nicholson, Hannah Wilson, Regan Macomson and Tori Radcliff will be honored prior to the match.
