South Euclid, OH. – The Wheeling University Volleyball team faces their final road test of the regular season on Friday as they faced Notre Dame College. It was a battle in the first set, going to a win-by-two scenario, but Wheeling was able to fight back and earn the sweep of the Falcons.

The Cardinal hitters were a little slow out the gate, with a .213 hitting percentage in the first set, and Notre Dame took advantage. The Falcons built an 8-3 lead over the first 11 points of the set and forced Wheeling to have to battle back the rest of the way. Slowly but surely, the Cardinals fought their way back into the set, and eventually overtook the lead with an 8-1 run halfway through the set that brought the score to 20-15. Now, it was the Falcons turn to battle back, and they did just that, scoring nine of the next 13 points to tie things at 24-24 and force the win-by-two scenario.

Senior Lexi Reinert gave her team the initial advantage with a kill, but Notre Dame answered making it 25-25. A kill by Aly Finch got Wheeling back out in front, and it was an attack error that eventually secured the 27-25 set one win. With the Cardinals up 1-0 in the match, the Cardinals were looking to sustain their success for the rest of the night. Set two saw the Cardinals continue to hold their advantage, getting out to a 9-2 lead in the early going. Senior Lexi Smith helped orchestrate the offense's success, with four kills in the Cardinal's first 17 points of the set. It was a lead too big for the Falcons to overcome, and Wheeling took a 2-0 lead in the match.

In the third set, Wheeling's hitters were truly able to flex their muscles, producing their highest hitting percentage of the night. The Cardinals hit at a .444 clip in the third set, and once again jumped out to a big advantage. It was a team effort throughout the set, with seven different Cardinals players registering kills in the set. Wheeling was able to build a 17-9 lead late in the set. The Falcons would go on to score just four more points in the set, and Wheeling would go on to complete the sweep with a 25-13 win. The Cardinals finished the regular season with a 7-2 record on the road, as they get ready to wrap up the regular season at home.

Mady Winters once again led the Cardinals offense with 12 kills, followed closely behind by Lexi Smith with 11 kills. They were the only two Cardinals to finish the day in double-digit kills and were two of four Cardinals to finish the day with five or more kills. Karly Niesen finished the day with 40 assists while Audrey Francis led the day with 17 digs. Senior Jenna Franks was right behind her with 12 digs while sophomore Karlee Lois was right behind her with 10. Wheeling now finishes the regular season at home with two games next week as they prepare for the MEC playoffs.

The Wheeling University Volleyball team is back in action on Saturday when they host Alderson Broaddus at 7 PM.