HUNTINGDON, Pa. - For six straight years, the Wittenberg Tigers have reached the NCAA Division III Tournament Round of 16. In four of the previous five years, the winner of that match has gone on to win the national championship. After a 3-1 upset of Juniata in a 2015 regional championship match, Wittenberg certainly hopes that trend continues.
The Tigers used a fast start to avenge an early season loss to Juniata on Wittenberg's home floor. In that match, the Tigers jumped out to a 2-0 lead but the Eagles answered with three straight to pull the early season surprise. In the match that mattered most, however, Wittenberg allowed Juniata a third-set win before answering in the fourth frame to pull out the victory.
The win pushed sixth-ranked Wittenberg to 27-2 on the season. More importantly it earned the Tigers, regular season champion of the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) for the 10th straight year and the NCAC Tournament for the ninth consecutive year, a national quarterfinal date with 18th-ranked Clarkson on Thursday, Nov. 19, at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Mich.
Wittenberg will enter the quarterfinals as the highest ranked team remaining in the field. The winner of the Tigers' match against Clarkson, which advanced with wins over Colby-Sawyer, Ithaca and Springfield in its regional tournament, will face the winner of a match between Hendrix and Bethel (Minn.). The other side of the bracket includes Carthage and Randolph-Macon in one quarterfinal and Cal Lutheran against Bowdoin in the other.
Against Juniata, which saw its season end with a 33-3 record after winning the Landmark Conference regular season and tournament titles, Wittenberg jumped on top by scores of 25-21 and 25-14 in the first two sets. After the Eagles appeared to re-take the momentum in the third set with a 25-14 decision, the Tigers pulled away in a see-saw fourth set to win 25-22.
Offensive balance was again key for Wittenberg, although senior Kara Seidenstricker (London, Ohio/Jonathan Alder) carried a heavier load than she had the previous days in wins over Bluffton and Heidelberg. Seidenstricker pounded 12 kills in 43 attempts, in addition to a team-high 14 digs.
Senior Melissa Emming (West Chester, Ohio/Mount Notre Dame) and junior Camila Quiñones (Sunbury, Ohio/Worthington Christian) added eight kills apiece, while junior setter Courtney Huck (Decatur, Ill./St. Teresa) continued to do tremendous work quarterbacking the offense with 18 assists. Emming led Wittenberg with four service aces.
The Tigers finished with eight blocks, double the total that Juniata picked up in the match. Juniors Kendall Farmer (Gurnee, Ill./Warren Township) and Emily Kahlig (Coldwater, Ohio/Coldwater) each were credited with four block assists, while Emming and senior libero Kristina Fultz (Batavia, Ohio/Glen Este) added 10 digs apiece.
After the match, it was announced that Emming and Seidenstricker were named to the All-Tournament team. Seidenstricker was named Most Valuable Player of the regional.
The last time Wittenberg advanced to the national quarterfinals, the Tigers won the national championship in 2011. That year, Wittenberg upset then-No. 1 ranked Calvin on the Knights' home floor, and the Tigers followed that with 3-0 victories over Cal Lutheran, Eastern (Pa.), and Christopher Newport in matches played at Washington University in St. Louis, Mo.
Written By: Ryan Maurer