SPRINGFIELD, Ohio - The Wittenberg Tigers sent its four seniors out on a high note with a pair of 3-0 wins over North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) rival Hiram and Capital on Senior Recognition Day in Pam Evans Smith Arena.
The wins moved Wittenberg, ranked fifth nationally and first in the NCAA Division III Great Lakes Region, to 27-2 overall and 14-0 in the NCAC. A night after clinching their 11th regular season conference crown in the last 12 years, the Tigers guaranteed themselves the right to host the NCAC Tournament semifinals and finals Nov. 7-8 with the win over Hiram.
In that match, the Tigers made short work of the only team to defeat them since 1997, winning by scores of 25-14, 25-21, 25-18. Senior right-side hitter Jackie Williams (Rocky River, Ohio/Magnificat)was in her typical All-American form with 10 kills, while senior middle hitter Jessica Kimble (Dennison, Ohio/Claymont) added nine kills and six blocks and freshman middle hitter Katie Sumner (Dublin, Ohio/Watterson) chipped in with seven kills and six blocks.
The junior setting combo of Erin Slattery (Chagrin Falls, Ohio/Kenston) and Kendall Obreza (Gainesville, Fla./Oak Hall)finished with 16 assists each, while senior outside hitter Kathleen Graham (Bowling Green, Ohio/Toledo St. Ursula) added five blocks and four assists in a fine all-around effort. Rounding things out, junior outside hitter Leslie Clark (Marion, Ohio/Harding) and senior libero Laura Fender (Toledo, Ohio/St. Ursula) led with 11 digs apiece.
After Capital rallied from two sets down to pick up a 3-2 win over Hiram in the second match of the day, the Crusaders fell to Wittenberg by scores of 25-14, 27-25, 25-20. The key to this match for Wittenberg was a rally in the second set, keyed by Kimble with a block to tie it at 24-24 and a kill on match point.
Williams led the offense overall with 12 kills and an attack percentage of .435, followed by Sumner with 11 kills and an attack percentage of .588 and Kimble with nine kills and an attack percentage of .471. Sumner added two aces and two blocks, while Kimble added a team-high four blocks.
Slattery led with 22 assists, while Obreza added 13 assists. Fender led the defense with 13 digs and also had two aces, and Clark capped the stats sheet with 10 digs.