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Audrey Francis
Terry Hancock
1
West Liberty WL 7-4,6-3 MEC
3
Winner Wheeling WHL 8-2,7-2 MEC
West Liberty WL
7-4,6-3 MEC
1
Final
3
Wheeling WHL
8-2,7-2 MEC
Winner
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 4 F
West Liberty WL 21 25 15 22 (1)
Wheeling WHL 25 20 25 25 (3)

Game Recap: Volleyball | | Andrew Woodley, Sports Information Director

Cards knock off West Liberty in MEC Quarterfinals, 3-1

WHEELING, W.Va. (March 9) – Behind a career-high 43 digs by senior Audrey Francis (Sidney, Ohio/Fairlawn), the No. 15 Wheeling University volleyball team earned a 3-1 win over West Liberty in the Mountain East Conference Tournament (MEC) Quarterfinals Tuesday night.
 
THE RUNDOWN
  • Final Score: No. 15 Wheeling 3, West Liberty 1 (25-21, 20-25, 25-15, 25-22)
  • Records: Wheeling (9-2) | West Liberty (7-4)
  • Location: McDonough Center – Wheeling, West Virginia
Abby Witucky Senior Day
TEAM LEADERS
  • Francis was everywhere defensively. She was perfect on receptions and posted an eye-popping 43 digs to help propel the Cardinals to the victory.
  • Junior Lexi Smith (Portsmouth, Ohio/Notre Dame) also established a career-high with 17 kills, while adding four blocks 
  • Junior Lexi Reinert (Cincinnati, Ohio/Ursuline) recorded a season-high with 16 kills and chipped in three blocks.
  • Freshman setter Karly Niesen (Cincinnati, Ohio/Roger Bacon) tossed around 53 assists to guide the offense. She also chipped in 17 digs defensively.
  • Freshman Raegan Rosi (Powell, Ohio/Olentangy Liberty) finished one shy of a double-double with nine kills and 18 digs.
  • Prior to the match, the Cardinals honored senior Abby Witucky (Marietta, Ohio/Parkersburg Catholic) for her contributions to the program over the past four years.
HOW IT HAPPENED
  • The Cardinals trailed 16-14 in the opening set, when it went on an 11-5 run to rally and win the first set.
  • West Liberty had 17 kills in the second set and just three errors to help it even the match at 1-1.
  • Wheeling managed to regroup and take the third set. The Cardinals never trailed in the set.
  • Head Coach Christy Benner's Cardinals managed to hold off the Hilltoppers in the fourth set. The set saw eight ties and three lead changes, before Wheeling closed the match out at 25-22 to advance to the MEC Semifinals.
 UP NEXT
  • The Cardinals move on to play the top-seed in the MEC South Division, West Virginia State. The Yellow Jackets swept Charleston Tuesday night to secure hosting-rights for the remainder of the tournament
  • The match is set to take place on Friday, March 13 at 7:30 p.m.
  • Fairmont State and Davis & Elkins will compete in the other semifinal matchup.
  • No spectators are permitted inside the facility, but fans can watch a live stream of the match on The Mountain East Digital Network OTT app (Roku, AppleTV, Android, and Amazon Fire TV) or by visiting MountainEast.tv.
 
 
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