Wheeling, W. Va. – After waiting four long months, the Wheeling University Volleyball team (0-0) begins their season when they head to the West Florida Invitational starting tomorrow at 7 PM. Wheeling will play four games over the three-day tournament as they look to start off strong in the Fall of 2021.
For the eighth year in a row, Wheeling begins the season as the defending Mountain East Conference (MEC) Champions, after defeating Fairmont State in the championship game last season 3-0. Overall, they finished the season 11-2, including an 8-2 mark in conference play. They, unfortunately, had their string of 219 straight conference regular-season wins snapped, but in the end, they were still able to rise to the top of the MEC.
This is the largest roster that Wheeling Head Volleyball Coach Christy Benner has ever had, but it provides a good mix of experience and talent for the Cardinals to build off of. It gives the Cardinals more depth to work with and if they buy into the program, it could be a sign of more success on the horizon.
"It is definitely different (having a big group), but I really enjoy it," said Benner. "They have really bought into everything we are trying to do this season."
One of the leaders of this big squad is senior Audrey Francis (Sidney, OH./Fairlawn) who is a four-time MEC Libero of the Year Award winner. Francis led the Cardinals' defensive game with 337 digs for an average of 7.33 digs per set. On the offensive side, the Cardinals will get their setter, sophomore Karly Niesen (Cincinnati, OH./Roger Bacon), back who led the way with 578 assists. Also returning are the team's top two attackers in seniors Kayla Bekier (Northwood, OH./Lake) and Lexi Reinert (Cincinnati, OH./Ursuline Academy). Bekier led the way last season with 185 kills while Reinert came through with 132.
The Matchups
University of West Florida: The Cardinals and Arganuats have squared off six times and each team has gone 3-3 during that span. The two teams had early matchups against each other for four straight years from 2019-2016. In those four matches, Wheeling has managed to go 3-1 and has taken 10 of the 16 sets played. They last faced each other on September 7th, 2019, when Wheeling took the match three sets to one. Former Cardinals Cassie Meyer and Breanna Kramer led the attack that day with 20 and 16 kills respectively.
University of Southern Indiana (USI): The Cardinals and Eagles haven't met in a game since 2013, but each time they have met up it hasn't been good for the Cardinals. Wheeling is 0-3 against USI lifetime, and have only won one of the ten sets played. Their last match came on September 7th, 2013, when the Eagles defeated Wheeling 3-0.
Palm Beach Atlantic University: The Cardinals and Sailfish have matched up twice in the team's history and have each gone 1-1 in those games. Palm Beach Atlantic is another team that Wheeling hasn't seen in a while, with their last game happening on December 12th, 2015. Throughout the two matches, Wheeling has won five of eight sets as each team has taken at least one set in both matches. The last time they met, Wheeling was the victor taking a 3-1 win that included back-to-back 26-24 wins in sets two and three.
Spring Hill College: The Cardinals and Badgers only have one previous matchup on September 7th, 2019 in a game that Wheeling won 3-0. Former Cardinals Cassie Meyer and Haley Kramer each had 13 kills in the win while Breanna Kramer added 12 kills of her own in a 3-0 sweep.
Players to Watch
-On the defensive side of the ball, Audrey Francis will look to dig her team out during the match. The four-time MEC Libero of the Year has proven to be one of the top defensive players in the conference and will look to be a leader in 2021.
-Senior Kayla Bekier was a kills machine last season, racking up 185, and needs to be on top of her game again in 2021. She was named to the All-MEC First team last season.
The Details
Tip-off for tomorrow's opener for Wheeling against The University of West Florida is scheduled for 7 PM. You can watch the game live by clicking HERE or follow along with live stats by clicking HERE.
