Tigers Clinch Share of 12th NCAC Title In 13 Years

Kimmie Dyer

RICHMOND, Ind. - It wasn't their best day - especially by the lofty standards of one of the most successful volleyball programs in all of NCAA Division III over the last 20 years - but the Wittenberg Tigers continued their march through the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) with matching 3-1 wins over Oberlin and Denison.

The wins accomplished a number of things for the Tigers. First, and most importantly, Wittenberg moved to 14-0 in the NCAC, clinching at least a share of the 2009 regular season championship. The Tigers, who have now won 12 of the last 13 regular season titles, have two matches remaining, but they are assured home court advantage for the NCAC Tournament, by virtue of a season sweep of second-place Hiram.

Overall, Wittenberg is 18-3 and ranked eighth in the nation by the American Volleyball Coaches Association. The Tigers matched their own NCAC record of 63 straight regular season victories. Dating back to 1997, Wittenberg has won 126 of its last 127 regular season conference matches.

Interestingly, it was the first time that Denison had won a set in a match against Wittenberg since 2001 and the first time that Oberlin had won a set in a match against Wittenberg since 1989. Still, the Tigers extended their winning streak against the Big Red to 31 in a row, dating back to 1991, and against Oberlin to 28 in a row, dating back to 1989.

The day started with a 25-22, 25-11, 23-25, 25-14 victory over Oberlin. Sophomore Miranda Sagle (Springfield, Ohio/Shawnee) led the Tigers with 11 kills, while junior Amy Cox (Newark, Ohio/Catholic) added eight kills on a .466 attack percentage and senior Kate Snead (Westerville, Ohio/South) finished with seven kills on a .500 attack percentage. Cox was tops on defense with six blocks, while sophomore Kimmie Dyer (Copley, Ohio/Copley) chipped in with four aces.

The day ended with a 20-25, 25-17, 25-14, 25-19 win over Denison. Snead was very productive with 14 kills, followed by Dyer with nine and Sagle with eight. Defensively, freshman Christina Gilene (Milford, Ohio/McNicholas) was tops with 18 digs, while senior Kendall Obreza (Gainesville, Fla./Oak Hall) added 17 digs.

The Tigers will look to clinch the 2009 title outright in the regular season home finale against Earlham at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 21. Then Wittenberg hits the road again for three matches at Heidelberg on Friday, Oct. 23 and Saturday, Oct. 24. Two of those matches are against nationally ranked teams - Heidelberg and Carthage.