Erie, PA. – After two grueling days of competition, the Wheeling University Volleyball team (28-10) has advanced to the 2024 NCAA DII Atlantic Region Championship match. The Cardinals are playing in the match for the first time since the 2021 season, and will meet the same opponent they faced that year in Gannon University. The two teams will square off at the Hagerty Family Events Center tonight at 7 PM, with the winner advancing to the Elite 8 in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
The Cardinals have battled hard over the last two days of competition, picking up wins over the University of Pitt Johnstown and IUP over the first two rounds. The tournament started against Pitt Johnstown in the Regional Quarterfinals, where the Cardinals offense led the way. They hit .310 as a team in the matchup, knocking down 61 kills on 145 total attacks. After dominating the first set with a 25-19 win, Wheeling had to battle in the second set, taking a 2-0 lead with a 25-21 win. The Mountain Cats weren't going down without a fight, however, and battled back in set three to win 25-21 and force a fourth set. The Cardinals stopped things there, hitting .344 in the set, and took a 25-21 win to advance to the Regional Semifinals.
Awaiting them was one of the hottest teams in the tournament in IUP, who had just beat host Gannon in the 2024 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Championship. The Crimson Hawks carried their momentum into the semifinals, knocking down the Cardinals 25-21 in set one and 25-22 in set two to take a 2-0 lead. With their backs against the wall, Wheeling turned to their talented group of nine seniors to push them through. The third set saw Wheeling hit a match-best .250 and they battled to a win-by-two scenario. After going back and forth on the first six points of the win-by-two scenario, the Cardinals would be the ones to break free, earning a 28-26 set three win to stay alive. It shifted the momentum to Wheeling's side and they would come back with a 25-23 set four win to force the fifth and final set. It was back and forth once again, but the Cardinals hit a 6-0 run to end the set, advancing to the Regional Championship with a 15-9 win.
It has been the senior leadership pacing the Cardinals throughout the tournament, with Riley Kindall taking the offensive reigns. The senior outside hitter has knocked down 52 kills over the first two matches, and put together a .317 hitting percentage, hitting ,290 or better in both matches. Her most efficient effort would come against Pitt-Johnstown, where she hit .345 and picked up her 20th double-double of the season, finishing with 16 digs. She duplicated her 26-kill effort against the Crimson Hawks, hitting .292 in the match, and added her 21st double-double of the season with 23 digs. Kindall came through when her team needed her most, knocking down six of those 26 kills in the fifth set, including the final two kills to set up match point and to ultimately knock off the Crimson Hawks. Kindall will be relief on once again in this Championship match and tries to keep her hot streak alive.
When the Cardinals needed a spark against the Crimson Hawks, it was senior Mady Winters who got them going. She tied her season-high with 18 kills and was the team's most efficient hitter, hitting .419 in the match. With the Cardinal's backs against the wall, Winters went to work knocking down 10 of her 18 kills between the third and fourth set, helping the Cardinals force the decisive fifth set. Winters has taken on more of a defensive role so far in 2024, but showed that she can still swing it when her team needs it the most. Orchestrating the Cardinal's offense throughout the tournament has been none other than graduate setter Karly Niesen. She has gone over the 50 assist mark in each match during the tournament, putting together 103 assists and leading her team to a combined .231 hitting percentage. Neisen has established herself as the best setter in program history, and sits second in NCAA DII in assists this season.
The 2024 NCAA DII Atlantic Regional Championship match will be a rematch of the 2021 Championship match when Wheeling University hosted. The Cardinals and Golden Knights are no strangers to the big stage, having met in the Regional Championships four times over the last 10 seasons. Gannon's path to the Regional Championship saw the Golden Knights take down #8 Shaw in four sets and #5 West Virginia State in three sets in the Regional Semifinals. This class of nine seniors has fueled the run, getting back to the championship match for the first time since their freshman seasons and they aren't ready to go down without a fight. They look to advance to next week's Elite 8 in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, which would have them in the Elite 8 for the first time since the 2018 season.
The Matchup
Saturday's Regional final match will be the 14th meeting between the Cardinals and Golden Knights in program history, with Wheeling holding a slight edge in the all-time series at 7-6. It is the fifth all-time postseason meeting between the two teams, and the fourth time the teams have met in the Regional Championship. Gannon holds the advantage in the postseason against Wheeling, with the Cardinals going 2-3, and in Regional Championship matches, the Cardinals are 1-3 against the Golden Knights. They look to turn their postseason fortunes around and advance to the Elite 8 this year.
The last meeting between the two teams was a regular season match back on September 19th, in a match the Cardinals won 3-2. It was a big day for freshman middle hitter Katie Wilking, who picked up 19 kills, to lead the Cardinal offense. Mady Winters (16) and Riley Kindall (15) would each hit double figure kills in the match, while Kindall completed the double-double with 19 digs. Karly Niesen would be the other Cardinal to finish with a double-double, adding 55 assists and 17 digs in the effort.
The Details
Tip-off for Saturday's Regional Championship is scheduled for 7 PM inside the Hagerty Family Events Center in Erie, Pennsylvania. You can watch the action live by clicking HERE or follow along with Live Stats by clicking HERE.
