SPRINGFIELD, Ohio - The Hope Flying Dutch jumped on top of the Wittenberg Tigers with two dominating sets and then withstood a late rally to pull out a 3-1 win on the opening day of the 2014 Courtyard by Marriott Wittenberg National Invitational.

Hope was efficient and effective in the first two sets, capturing victories by scores of 25-19 and 25-14. The Tigers rallied, however, in the third set, finally piecing together a pair of scoring runs in the late stages to pull out a 25-21 decision. The Flying Dutch returned the favor in the fourth frame to close the match out.

The key to the match was ball control, particularly in the area of serve receiving. Hope pounded out 11 aces, compared to one for Wittenberg, as the veteran Flying Dutch were more consistent and controlled with their passing.

The final statistics were deceiving as Hope finished with 50 kills to 48 for Wittenberg, and the dig totals were just one better for the Dutch as well. Hope did score 10 more points on service aces, and the Dutch came up with two more blocks in the match.

Individually, Wittenberg was paced by junior Kara Seidenstricker (London, Ohio/Jonathan Alder), who totaled 15 kills and 15 digs to lead the Tigers in both areas. Her defensive work was matched by junior Melissa Emming (West Chester, Ohio/Mount Notre Dame) and senior Meghan Vodopich (Canton, Ohio/Perry), who both came up with 15 digs.

Vodopich added four kills and 32 assists in the match, while Emming chipped in with eight kills. Also of note was the play of sophomore Camila Quiñones (Sunbury, Ohio/Worthington Christian), who came off the bench to contribute seven kills and two blocks.

Written By: Ryan Maurer