Wheeling, W. Va. – After a heavy dose of Mountain East Conference (MEC) play, the Wheeling University Volleyball team gets set for a non-conference match on Tuesday. They stay in the Atlantic Region when they welcome Ashland University in for their dig pink game. The Cardinals are looking to stay strong in in-region play as they head down the stretch.

The Cardinals are coming off their first back-to-back weekend of conference play as they earned a pair of sweeps over West Virginia Wesleyan and Davis & Elkins. In their second match of the weekend, the Cardinals and Senators battled and the Cardinals would pick up their second sweep of the weekend at 3-0. The first set would be the most competitive of the day between the two teams, with neither team holding more than a three-point advantage at any point in the set. However, the Cardinals would get over that mark, smacking down the final two points and the Cardinals picked up a 25-20 win. That was the closest set of the afternoon, as Wheeling wrapped things up with wins of 25-16 and 25-8 as they completed their second sweep of the weekend.

Leading the way for the Cardinals throughout the weekend was sophomore Katie Wilking, who picked up 11 kills for the second straight match. She hit .474 in the second match of the weekend and, between the two matches she combined for 22 kills and a .487 hitting percentage throughout the weekend. She was the Cardinal's leading attacker throughout the weekend, but her impact was also felt on the defensive side of the ball. Against West Virginia Wesleyan, Wilking was a key part of the Cardinal's out blocking the Bobcats 13-2. She finished with seven blocks assists in Friday's match, bringing her season total to 52.0. Wilking sits second on the team in both kills and blocks this season and looks to continue to help the Cardinals down the stretch run.

The leader of that Cardinal has been setter Karly Niesen, who finished with a pair of 30 assist days. She helped the Cardinals hit .302 as a team against Davis & Elkins and continues to chase down the career assist mark. She has helped the Cardinals hit .300 or better in eight matches this season, including five of the last six matches. Niesen is the two-time defending MEC Player of the Year and is looking to help the Cardinals to the MEC Tournament, and once again chase down an MEC Championship. On the back line, the Cardinals had one of their freshman step up in Olivia Batch. Batch finished with 16 digs in the match against West Liberty, and tied for the team lead with 29 digs. Batch has been strong on both sides of the ball and looks to continue her success.

With one more weekend of MEC South Play before the divisional stretch run, the Cardinals are looking to use this week as a chance to tune-up for the MEC Tournament stretch. The Cardinals begin the week in Atlantic Region play, as they welcome in Ashland for a non-conference match. Wheeling has played well in in-region play this year, with their only loss coming against West Virginia State in the MEC opener. As they chase down a spot in the MEC Tournament, the Cardinals are also fighting for a chance to host the 2024 Atlantic Regional Tournament, which would Bring the event back to Wheeling for the first time since the 2021 season. As they head into non-conference play, they look to continue their success on their home floor.

The Matchup

The Cardinals and Eagles are meeting for the 10th time in program history, with Wheeling leading the all-time series at 5-4. It will be just the second time that the teams have met in the Alma Grace McDonough Center, with Wheeling winning the only previous meeting. The home team has won every match between the two teams in the all-time series., and the teams are renewing a rivalry with their first meeting since the 2021 season.

Their last meeting came during that 2021 season, where Wheeling picked up a 3-2 win in a neutral site tournament in Indianapolis. Riley Kindall would pace the Cardinals offensive effort, picking up 20 kills, while Mady Winters added 18 kills on the day. Former Cardinal Audrey Francis led the defense with 23 digs while Karly Niesen paced the effort with 61 assists.

The Details

Tip-off for Tuesday night's game is scheduled for 7 PM inside the Alma Grace McDonough Center. You can watch the game live by clicking HERE or follow along with Live Stats by clicking HERE.