Wheeling, W. Va. – The Wheeling University Volleyball team (24-5, 15-1) honored their eight seniors in their regular-season finale when they hosted West Liberty. After dropping a tight first set, the Cardinals were able to battle back and beat the Hilltoppers 3-1.

Right from the start of the game, the atmosphere was electric as the two rivals went back and forth. It was West Liberty that got the early advantage, jumping out of an 11-8 lead early in the first set. After Wheeling battled back to take a 14-14 lead, it looked like West Liberty would tame the set as they went on an 8-2 run that had them ahead 22-15 late in the set. The Cardinals weren't ready to yield that easily as they came back to tie the game at 24-244, forcing a win-by-two scenario. However, it was the Hilltoppers who would score the final two points and secured a 1-0 lead in the back.

The second set saw the back and forth continued as the team's played to an 11-11 tie through the first 22 points of the set. Wheeling got the advantage on a 6-0 run that got them out in front 17-11. Seniors Lexi Reinert and Kayla Bekier would help push the score to 23-15 as Wheeling tried to close out that second set. They would do just that as Tylah Yoemans and Mady Winters each secured a kill to give Wheeling a 25-16 set win. In set three, Wheeling got out to an 11-8 lead, like the Hilltoppers did in the first half. It was a lead that Wheeling would never give up as they went on to win the set 25-20, and had West Liberty backed up against the wall.

However, the Hilltoppers just kept coming, scoring the first four points of set four, and led 6-3 through the first nine points of the match. Wheeling would get an offensive boost courtesy of Kayla Bekier, who racked up six kills over the next 19 points of the set and got Wheeling back out in front 15-13. The lead would change just two more times in the set, but Wheeling would be the one with the last laugh as they grabbed a 23-22 lead late in the set. Lexi Smith would pick up another kill, and a Hilltopper error would end the match and hand Wheeling the 25-23 win, and the 3-1 win of the match.

It was a big day for Bekier, who tied her season-high with 21 kills in the match, including six in that fourth set. She was one of five Cardinals with double-digit kills in the game as Lexi Reinert (12), Yoemans (11), Smith (11), and Mady Winters (10) each finished with double-digit kills. Karly Niesen led the way with 57 assists in the game, and Audrey Francis led the defense with 36 digs. Jenna Franks also added 27 digs of her own as the seniors played a big role as they wrapped up their final regular-season home game on their home court. They now look ahead to the Mountain East Conference (MEC) playoffs next week.

The Wheeling Volleyball team will return to action in the first round of the MEC Playoffs, which will be held on Thursday, November 18^th.