The Tigers showed again why they are the preseason favorites in the NCAC again this year, and also why they may be a factor when the postseason rolls around. On Wednesday, Wittenberg easily defeated Earlham, 3-0, to open conference action, and then over the weekend, the Tigers went 2-2 in the Emory Invitational in Atlanta, Ga.

In the win over Earlham, a young team that went on to win the Heidelberg Invitational over theweekend, the Tigers controlled things from the outset. Wittenberg won 15-11, 15-4, 15-10 as sophomores Brittany Baume (Springfield, Ohio/Southeastern), Teresa Murphy (Blacklick, Ohio/Newark Catholic) and Tiffany Keller (Massillon, Ohio/Tuslaw) all finished in double digits in kills. Sophomore Shelli Habegger (Curtice, Ohio/Clay) had 47 assists.

In the weekend tournament, which featured some of the top competition in the country, Wittenberg finished a misleading seventh, losing out on several tiebreakers despite defeating eventual runner-up Juniata in an exciting 3-2 match. Freshman middle hitter Sarah Muzi (Canton, Ohio/GlenOak) had a breakout weekend, recording 39 kills, 11 blocks and 26 digs in the tournament.