LEXINGTON, Va. - The Wittenberg Tigers were the class of the Washington & Lee Invitational, defeating Lynchburg and the host team by 3-0 scores on Friday before topping Berry and Averett by matching 3-1 scores on Saturday.
The four wins pushed Wittenberg's overall record to 7-1, heading into next week's Wittenberg Fall Classic in Pam Evans Smith Arena. Senior Melissa Emming (West Chester, Ohio/Mount Notre Dame) earned a spot on the all-tournament team alongside senior right-side hitter Kara Seidenstricker (London, Ohio/Jonathan Alder), who was additionally named Tournament MVP.
The tournament started for Wittenberg with a win over Lynchburg by set scores of 25-16, 25-13 and 25-17. The offense was led by junior Kendall Farmer (Gurnee, Ill./Warren Township), who pounded six kills in seven attempts for an outstanding .857 attack percentage, and sophomore Maddie Fischer (Minerva, Ohio/Minerva), who also finished with six kills. Freshman setter Karen Wildemann (Columbus, Ind./North) dished out 16 assists, while Seidenstricker and Emming were tops in digs with five apiece.
Seidenstricker showed the way against Washington & Lee with eight kills and seven digs as Wittenberg won by set scores of 25-12, 25-16, 26-24. Emming matched the kill total with eight, followed closely by Fischer with seven and junior middle hitter Emily Kahlig (Coldwater, Ohio/Coldwater) added six kills and a .750 attack percentage. Junior setter Courtney Huck (Decatur, Ill./St. Teresa) led in assists with 19 and senior Bryanna Jay (Girard, Ohio/Girard) was stellar at the net with six blocks.
Saturday started with a win over Berry by set scores of 21-25, 25-16, 25-21, 25-19. Seidenstricker led three players in double figures in kills with 15, followed by Emming with 13 and Fischer with 12. Huck and Wildemann each finished with 23 assists, and senior libero Kristina Fultz (Batavia, Ohio/Glen Este) was oustanding with 27 digs.
The final win over the weekend came against Averett by set scores of 25-11, 25-14, 21-25, 25-15. Seidenstricker led with 12 kills to go along with 10 digs, and Wildemann led in assists with 16. Fultz was tops in digs with 20 and Jay led in blocks with five.
Written By: Ryan Maurer