Wittenberg Falls To Hiram
It was eight years, almost to the day, and 63 regular season matches between North Coast Athletic Conference losses for the Wittenberg Tigers. In 1997, Case Western Reserve toppled the Tigers in a 3-2 decision, and on Friday in Hiram, the Terriers finally reached the top of the conference mountain, pulling out a 3-1 win over visiting Wittenberg in a key conference tilt.
HIRAM, Ohio - It was eight years, almost to the day, and 63 regular season matches between North Coast Athletic Conference losses for the Wittenberg Tigers. In 1997, Case Western Reserve toppled the Tigers in a 3-2 decision, and on Friday in Hiram, the Terriers finally reached the top of the conference mountain, pulling out a 3-1 win over visiting Wittenberg in a key conference tilt.
The loss dropped Wittenberg, the fifth-ranked team in the nation, to 16-4 overall and 4-1 in the NCAC. Hiram, the NCAC regular season and tournament runner-up each of the last two years, improved to 20-3 overall and 2-0 in the conference.
Hiram set the tone early, playing before a packed house and taking a shot at the team the Terriers have been targeting for years. Hiram won Game 1 convincingly, 30-19, before the Tigers rallied for a 30-19 win in the second game to even things up. It was the first game in an NCAC match that Wittenberg had lost since 1999.
Games 3 and 4 were closer, but both went Hiram's way as the Terriers' veteran team pulled it out. The scores were 30-26 and 30-27.
Statistically, Wittenberg didn't play poorly, but the Tigers continue to search for enough offense. The kill attempts were very even as just two players reached double figures: sophomore outside hitter Jan Kehres led with 13 kills and senior outside hitter Linda Young added 11 kills.
Sophomore setter Sarah Matesich led with 25 assists. Defensively, the Tigers got 20 digs from freshman libero Laura Fender and 19 more from Kehres. Senior middle hitter Emily Dixon led with five blocks and sophomore middle hitter Caitlin Augustus finished with four blocks.