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SPRINGFIELD, Ohio — The Wittenberg Tigers have won 19 of their first 21 matches in the 2010 season, with 15 of those victories coming by 3-0 scores. The latest was a 25-11, 25-7, 25-11 decision over North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) rival Denison.
The win was Wittenberg's seventh in a row since the Tigers' record-breaking 67-match NCAC regular season win streak was snapped on Sept. 26 by Hiram. Wittenberg has not dropped a set in those seven victories. Denison, which has lost 32 in a row to Wittenberg since a five-set victory in 1991, dropped to 8-14 on the season. The Big Red are now 4-4 in the conference, while the Tigers improved to 9-1.
Wittenberg dominated all three sets from the outset, jumping out to leads of 7-0 and 9-0 in the first two sets, both behind the serving of junior middle hitter Katie Sumner (Dublin, Ohio/Watterson), and a 7-1 lead in the third set behind the serving of sophomore outside hitter Jessie Batanian (Toledo, Ohio/Notre Dame). The Big Red's cumulative attack percentage was -.024, compared to Wittenberg's .443 as the Tigers piled up 43 kills to Denison's 17.
Individually, the Tigers got a big offensive performance from junior middle hitter Miranda Sagle (Springfield, Ohio/Shawnee), who finished with 12 kills in 17 attempts for a .647 attack percentage. Senior setter Amy Cox (Newark, Ohio/Catholic) finished with 21 assists in just 32 attempts over the first two sets before giving way to sophomore Hallie Donathan (Tipp City, Ohio/Tippecanoe), who contributed 10 assists, five digs and her first career solo block, no small feat for a player who stands 5-foot-5.
Defensively, Sagle added a whopping seven blocks, including three solos. Batanian led with 10 digs, while sophomore libero Christina Gilene (Milford, Ohio/McNicholas) added nine digs.
Wittenberg returns to action at home again on Saturday and Sunday, hosting a "mini" version of an NCAC Power Weekend. The Big Red are one of the four schools participating in the event, joining the host Tigers, Kenyon and Ohio Wesleyan.