Pensacola, FL. – As they kicked off one of the toughest non-conference schedules in recent history, the Wheeling University Volleyball team (0-2, 0-0) opened up the 2025 season in the sunshine State at the University of West Florida Invitational. The Cardinals battled throughout the day, taking two sets, including forcing two win-by-two scenarios, but they were swept on the day. They opened things up with a 3-1 loss against #20 West Florida and followed that with a 3-1 loss to Oklahoma Baptist in the night cap.

Game One: West Florida 3, Wheeling 1
The first game of the West Florida tournament saw the Cardinals take on the host #20 West Florida. It was a back and forth match early on, with each of the first two sets going to win-by-two scenarios. However, West Florida showed why they are the #20 team in the nation in the preseason poll, putting up the first five points of the opening set. It would be senior setter Karly Niesen who broke the run with a kill and got the Cardinals on the board. From there, Wheeling slowly started to battle back, getting to within one point of the Tartans with the score sitting at 7-6. The back and forth nature of the set continued until West Florida had Wheeling on the ropes at 23-18 late. Mady Winters would start Wheeling's biggest run of the set with a kill as the Cardinals scored five straight points to make it a 23-23 score. The two teams would battle to a win-by-two scenario, before a Wheeling attack error gave West Florida the 26-24 first set win.
With the Cardinals down 1-0, set two would see them try to answer back, holding an early 4-3 lead. Sophomore Cami Black would get her team going, registering two kills out of the first four points of the set. The two teams would remain deadlocked throughout the set, with no team having larger than a four-point lead at any point during the set. That lead belonged to West Florida, who led 13-9, but Wheeling would answer with three straight points to get back to a one-point set. West Florida had the Cardinals down to their last point once again, leading 24-23, bat Katie Wilking and Samantha Comer jumped up for the block that tied things at 24-24 and forced a win-by-two scenario. The two teams would trade points as the score sat tied at 25-25 before a Riley Kindall kill gave Wheeling the advantage. Wilking would end up knocking down the final kill and the Cardinals tied the match with a 27-25 win.
With momentum on their side, the Cardinals kept it going in set three, scoring two of the first three points to take a 2-1 lead. However, a 10-3 Tartan run would flip the script as West Florida and would take a 10-5 advantage. Comer would break the string with a skill and the Cardinals would get back to within two points of the Tartans, going on a 4-1 run that made it an 11-9 score. West Florida would go on another run to extend their lead to 18-14, before the Cardinals got back in the set, with a Winters kill bringing the score to 23-21. West Florida would end up knocking down the final two points of the set and West Florida stakes themselves to a 2-1 lead in the match. In the final set of the night, the two teams battled to a 15-13 score. Kindall kept her strong day going, knocking down four kills during the run. However, an 8-0 run by the Tartans would put the set out of reach as West Florida picked up the 25-14 set win and Wheeling cell 3-1.
It was a big day for senior Riley Kindall, who set a new career-high with 20 kills on the day, while hitting .255 on the day. Kindall served as a six rotation player for the Cardinals a season ago, and continued that tend this season adding 14 digs for her first double-double of the season. Katie Wilking was the only other Cardinal to finish with double digit kills, recording 11 on the night, while Karly Niesen led the Cardinals with 48 assists. On the defensive side, Giana Mutersbaugh would lead the way with 22 digs and was one of two Cardinals to reach the 20 dig mark on the night. Cami Black would be the other Cardinal to hit the mark, finishing with 20, while Faith Keifer added 13 digs in her season debut. The Cardinals returned to action in the night cap when they would face Oklahoma Baptist.

Game Two: Oklahoma Baptist 3, Wheeling 1
After dropping their first match of the day, Wheeling was looking to come back strong as they took on Oklahoma Baptist in their second match of the day. Set one saw the Cardinals get out to an early lead, courtesy of a Riley Kindall kill. However, the Bison came out swinging, scoring nine of the next two points to take a 9-3 lead. Oklahoma Baptist extended their lead to as much as 12-4 before the Cardinals started their battle back. The Bison were just two points away from a set win, leading 23-17, before Cami Black knocked down a kill that sent the Cardinals on a 6-1 run. Olivia Batch and Samantha Comer each added kills on the run as Wheeling made it a one-point game at 24-23, before Oklahoma Baptist secured the final point and took a 25-23 set one win.
In the second set, it was the Cardinals who would take the early advantage, knocking down 10 of the first 17 points of the set. Comer and Wilking each picked up two kills on the run as the Cardinals had their largest lead of the match so far. Wheeling kept that lead until Oklahoma Baptist tied the set at 14-14. The back and forth would go on throughout the middle of the set when the Cardinals held a 17-16 advantage. Kindall would smack down back-to-back kills that started a 7-2 run as the Cardinals brought up set point at 24-18. The Bison would add one more point to stay alive, but a service error on the next serve would be enough to give Wheeling the 25-19 set two win. With the match tied at 1-1, the Cardinals looked to come back strong and take their first match lead of the night.
Set three saw Oklahoma Baptist get out to a 3-0 lead before the Cardinals bounced back to tie the set at 7-7. Cami Black would give the Cardinals the lead with a kill, before the Bison would go on a 12-3 run that pushed their advantage to 19-11. That would be enough to carry them to a 25-19 set three win that gave Oklahoma Baptist a 2-1 lead in the match. Oklahoma Baptist kept the momentum going into set four, scoring six of the first seven points to take a 6-1 lead. Comer would get her team back on track with a kill and they were able to battle back and tie the set at 11-11. Wheeling was able to keep the Bison close throughout the set, getting as close as 19-17 in the late going of the set. Wilking and Batch would knock down back-to-back kills to tie things at 19-19, but a 5-2 Bison run ended the set at a 25-21 score and Wheeling fell in the match 3-1.
In game two, it was Katie Wilking who would pace Wheeling's offensive effort, picking up 12 kills on the day. She set a new career high with a .428 hitting percentage as she wrapped up a strong day on the court. The other two Cardinals to hit double digit kills were Riley Kindall and Mady Winters, who finished with 11 kills each on the night. Karly Niesen picked up 38 assists on the day, finishing with 67 assists between the two matches. On defense, Chylyn Pate paced the Cardinals with 15 digs, while Cami Black and Riley Kindall each got double digit digs with 11 and 10 respectively. For Kindall it was her second double double of the night as she rounded out a strong day one of action.
The Wheeling University Volleyball team returns to action on Saturday when they play game three of the West Florida Invitational, with tip-off scheduled for 10 AM.