Wheeling, W. Va. - The 2024 Mountain East Conference (MEC) Volleyball schedule opened on Friday with all 11 teams in the conference in action. The Wheeling University Volleyball team (7-7, 0-1) opened up their schedule at home, taking a five set loss at the hands of West Virginia State. On Tuesday night, they return to the Alma Grace McDonough Center, looking for a bounce back as they take on Fairmont State at 7 PM.
Friday night's match had its fair share of drama throughout, but it was the Cardinals who would start things strong. They got out to an early lead in set one and were able to ride that to a 25-21 set one win as they went ahead 1-0 in the match. However, West Virginia State would not go down without a fight and slowly began working their way back into the match. They would even the match with a 25-16 win in set two and we're going back and forth with the Cardinals late into the third set. However, West Virginia State picked up another 25-23 win and had the Cardinals on the ropes. Wheeling responded with a 25-19 win in set four, bringing up the decisive fifth and final set. West Virginia State punched early, but Wheeling was able to counter punch as the score sat at 7-5 in favor of the Cardinals. However, a 10-6 run over the final 16 points would give West Virginia State a 15-11 set win as they took the match 3-2.
Continuing her strong start to the season, Riley Kindall once again led Wheeling with her fifth straight double-double. She was the team's leading attacker finishing with 23 kills on 67 total attacks for a .239 hitting percentage. With her team on the ropes in the fourth set, Kindall would lead the way, knocking down a team-high six kills in the set and helping them force the fifth and decisive set. She would account for six of the 11 Cardinal points in the final set as well, knocking down six more kills to finish off her day. She was also second on the team in digs, finishing with 13 digs in the game. It was her fifth straight double-double and her eighth double-double of the season. As MEC play continues, she will continued to be relied on both in the front court and the back court to perform for the Cardinals.
The Cardinals have been cycling through several different Liberos this season, and Chylyn Pate would make a case for herself in the match against West Virginia State. The senior finished with a team-high 14 digs while having just one reception error on the night. Pate has been on a surge over her last five matches, recording 12 or more digs in each of those five matches. The Cardinals also had strong play from the server's box courtesy of freshman Bella DeBarr. DeBarr finished with a team-high four service aces while adding both a dig and an assist on the day. DeBarr has picked up at least one service ace in seven of the team's 14 matches this season and sits ninth in the conference with 11 service aces this season.
Tuesday night will mark the final match of this seven-match homestand for the Cardinals, and will also be the start of a long stretch against their fellow MEC North opponents. Four of their next five matches come against MEC North opponents, with the lone exception coming in the form of a non-conference match with Salem on October 11th. After starting the conference portion of their schedule 0-1, Wheeling is looking to bounce back and take advantage of the in-division matchups. They don't return to MEC South play until October 18th, when they take on West Virginia Wesleyan, and the Cardinals are looking to get on a roll as they try and climb the conference ladder.
The Matchup
The Cardinals and Falcons continue their historic rivalry on Tuesday night with the teams meeting for the 60th time in program history. Wheeling leads the all-time series at 47-12, holding a 24-4 record on their home floor compared to an 18-1 record in Fairmont, West Virginia. The two teams met in the MEC Semifinals a season ago, as the matches have become more and more competitive over the last couple of seasons.
Their last regular season meeting came on October 24th, 2023, when the two teams met at Fairmont State as the Cardinals picked up a 3-0 win. Former Cardinal Tylah Yeomans led the way with 16 kills for Wheeling, while Katie Wilking added 10 kills and Mady Winters knocked down eight. On defense, Riley Kindall paced the effort with 16 digs while Karly Niesen added 15 digs on the night.
The Details
Tip-off for Tuesday night's game is scheduled for 7 PM inside the Alma Grace McDonough Center. You can watch the match live by clicking HERE or follow along with Live Stats by clicking HERE.
