Tigers Go 2-1 In Courtyard Marriott Wittenberg National Invitational

SPRINGFIELD, Ohio - The Wittenberg Tigers were rolling toward a 3-0 weekend when they hit their first roadblock of the 2015 season. After a stunning 3-2 loss to 10th-ranked Juniata in the final match of the Courtyard Marriott Wittenberg National Invitational, Head Coach Paco Labrador hopes his team learned a lesson that will be valuable down the road.

Wittenberg, ranked fourth nationally, fell to 3-1 overall on the season after beating 17th-ranked St. Thomas on Friday and Johns Hopkins on Saturday before losing to the perennial powerhouse Eagle, also on Saturday. The Tigers have nearly a week to prepare for their first road trip of the 2015 season at the Washington & Lee Invitational, followed by another week off before the annual Wittenberg Fall Classic Sept. 18-19.

The Tigers started off with a dominating first two sets against St. Thomas, won by margins of 25-11 and 25-16. The Tommies responded with a 25-17 win in the third set before the Tigers regained their footing with a 25-12 win in Set 4.

Senior Kara Seidenstricker (London, Ohio/Jonathan Alder) turned in a tremendous all-around performance with 14 kills, 13 digs and nine service aces, which matched her own school record for aces in the 25-point rally scoring era. Junior Emily Kahlig (Coldwater, Ohio/Coldwater) added 11 kills and three blocks, and freshman Karen Wildemann (Columbus, Ind./North) was stellar with 26 assists.

Wittenberg's second outing of the weekend was even better, a 25-15, 25-11, 25-22 decision against Johns Hopkins. Camila Quinones (Sunbury, Ohio/Worthington Christian) led with 10 kills and a .400 attack percentage, Seidenstricker and senior Kristina Fultz (Batavia, Ohio/Glen Este) paced the defense with 29 digs between them, and junior Courtney Huck (Decatur, Ill./St. Teresa) was solid with 15 assists.

That set the stage for a de facto tourney title match against Juniata, and the Tigers appeared to have it in cruise control early in the third set, leading 10-4 after taking the first two sets 25-20 and 25-17. Juniata turned things around in stunning fashion, rallying for a 25-22 decision in the third frame, followed by wins of 25-16 and 15-9.

Seidenstricker set two more records, pounding 27 kills in 66 total attempts to set new standards for 25-point rally scoring era. Quinones added 11 kills, Huck dished out 24 assists and Wildemann added 27 assists, and Fultz was outstanding defensively with 31 digs.

Written By: Ryan Maurer