Wheeling, W. Va. – After Tuesday night's match, the Cardinals were prepared to hit the road to continue Mountain East Conference (MEC) North Division play. However, after an issue with venue accommodations at Point Park, the Cardinals got a chance to extend that homestand for one more match. They will host Point Park on Friday night with rip-off at 7 PM inside the Alma Grace McDonough Center.

The Cardinals are looking to build off of the momentum from a five-set win over Fairmont State last time out. The Cardinals would drop set one, but quickly bounced back in set two to pick up a 25-16 set two win that brought the match even to on win a piece. The Cardinals looked like they would take a lead in the match in set three, but Fairmont State battled back to force a win-by-two scenario and they went on to win 27-25. The Cardinals were backed against the wall, but still had fight in them, forcing a fifth set with a 25-21 win. The Cardinals started set five strong, scoring the first four points to force a Fairmont State timeout. As fast as Wheeling started the set, they ended just as strong picking up a 15-5 win to take the match 3-2.

When the Cardinals needed her most, they turned to freshman Olivia Batch and she came through with a big day on the floor. The freshman set a new career-high with 20 kills in the contest, while putting up a .283 hitting percentage. The freshman came through big time when her team needed her late, picking up 12 of those 20 kills between the fourth and fifth sets of the night. She would also add two key service aces, and added a double -double with 15 digs in the match. It was Batch's first career double-double as she set a new career high in kills in the contest. In the match's final moments, Batch put a cherry on top of her day, knocking down the final kill of the night to secure the win. She is currently tied for fourth on the team with 63 kills as she continues to be an asset for the Cardinals in her freshman season.

It was also a special night for one of the Cardinal veterans, in senior Mady Winters. Entering the match, she needed just four kills to reach the 1,000 career kill mark, and at the end of the first set she would get it. With the Cardinals leading 24-18 and facing set point, Winters would keep the team alive With a kill that would end up being the 1,000th of her career. Senior Riley Kindall also continued her strong season, leading the team with 24 kills and was second on the team with 19 digs. It was the sixth straight double double for Kindall as she continues her progression as a six-rotation player for the Cardinals. 

With MEC North Division play officially in full swing,, the Cardinals are looking to hit a run to start October. They faced a challenging preseason schedule, facing several nationally ranked opponents in an effort to prepare them for what they would see in the MEC. With three of their next four matches coming in MEC North Division play, with the lone exception being the match against Salem on October 11th. As the Cardinals try to stay strong in in-region play, racking up as many wins against their divisional opponents as they can will set them up to make a run to the MEC Tournament and beyond late in the season. Head Coach Christy Benner set up the schedule to challenge her team on purpose and they look to reap the benefits of those challenges in October.

The Matchup

The Cardinals and Pioneers are meeting for the fifth time in program history and the first time as MEC foes Wheeling has won each of the first five meetings between the two teams, including a 4-0 record inside the Alma Grace McDonough Center. However, this will be the first meeting between the two teams since the 2014 season, as both have completely new looks heading into their first matchup in 10 years.

That last meeting came on September 20th, 2014, in a game that Wheeling would win 3-0 inside the Alma Grace McDonough Center. Former Cardinal Jessica Thobe passed the Cardinal effort with 11 kills in the match, while former Cardinal Andrea Thobe racked up 37 assists. On the defensive side, Kayce Krucki racked up 18 digs while Ripley McKenzie added 15 digs to round out the effort.

The Details