No. 22 Tigers Split Doubleheader With JCU & Muskingum

New Concord, OH -  The No. 22 Wittenberg women's volleyball team traveled to Muskingum University to take on the Fighting Muskies and John Carroll University for a Saturday afternoon doubleheader.  The Tigers took down John Carroll 3-1 [21-25, 25-21, 25-17, 25-18] to start the day, compiling an overall hitting percentage of .237 with 64 kills on 173 total attacks. Katie Hiestand paced the Tiger offense to start the day, putting down 22 kills on 54 total attack attempts, adding 12 digs with one block and two service aces. Wittenberg returned to action to take on No. 21 Muskingum, falling to the Muskies 3-1 [15-25, 27-25, 22-25, 12-15]. Aubrey Cox led the Wittenberg attack in the final match of the day, logging 16 kills on 37 attack attempts, closing out the match with a .324 kill percentage.

Match One Breakdown

John Carroll would take the first set of the match, holding the Red and White to a .070 hitting percentage to start the day. Wittenberg bounced back to take the next three sets, while outhitting John Carroll in each set down the stretch. The Tigers put down 20 kills in the second set on 56 attack attempts. Wittenberg tallied their best hitting percentage in the third set against John Carroll, putting down 18 kills on 36 swings with just four errors, closing out the set with a .389 hitting percentage. The Tiger defense held strong in the third set, allowing John Carroll tallying just eight kills. Ashley Brooks supplied 46 of the 57 Tiger assists in the match. Taylor Yontz led the Red and White with 25 digs, while three fellow Tigers finished with double-digit digs.

Match Two Breakdown

Wittenberg returned to the court to take on Muskingum in the final match of the day in a Top 25 matchup. Muskingum took the early lead with a first win. The back-and-forth would continue into the second set, as the two sides would go point for point down the stretch with Wittenberg bringing the match back to even at 1-1. Wittenberg jumped out to the early lead in the second set before Muskingum fought their way back to even things at 17-17. After Muskingum regained a slim lead at 22-18, Wittenberg stormed back during the Dakota White service. With the set tied at 24-24, a kill from Gabi Hancock put the Tigers back ahead, igniting the final rally to secure the 27-25 win. Wittenberg had to battle back in the third set, after falling behind to the Muskies early. The Red and White overcame an eight-point deficit, chipping away at the Muskingum lead, including three consecutive ace's from Lexie Weithman to help the Red and White bring the set to, 21-18. The Red and White kept the pressure on Muskingum during the closing point, as a Yontz service rally brought the Tigers back to within two of taking the third set from the Muskies.

UP NEXT

Wittenberg will return to action on Saturday, Oct. 12 traveling to Mount Union for a 3:00 PM showdown with the Raiders.