Wheeling, W. Va. - As the Wheeling University Volleyball team (14-8, 8-3) continues their four match road trip, they bring their battles with the Mountain East Conference (MEC) South Division to an end on Friday. The team travels down to Charleston, West Virginia to take on the University of Charleston with first serve scheduled for 7 PM. The Cardinals will look to bounce back on the road with yet another chance to clinch their spot in the 2026 MEC Volleyball Championships.
Last time out, the Cardinals would meet up with MEC North Division leading Fairmont State for the second time this season. It was a tightly contested match throughout, with each set being decided by five points or fewer. The Cardinals would hit .232 as a team, and had an all-around hitting attack, with four different Cardinals finishing with double digit kills. After falling 25-20 in set one, it would take a Cardinal comeback effort in set two, as they trailed 20-17 late. The Cardinals would rattle off an 8-3 run to end the set, picking up the 25-23 win to even things at 1-1. However, despite holding late leads in both the third and fourth sets, the Cardinals were unable to overtake the Falcons, falling by scores of 25-20 and 25-21 to bring their night to an end.
Leading the way for the Cardinals was sophomore Camryn Matus, who picked up her second triple-double of the season and the third of her collegiate career. She would tie for the team lead with 14 kills on the day, while finishing second with 24 assists and adding 10 digs. It comes just 14 days after her first triple-double of the season, as she moves into second all-time in career triple-doubles. On the attack, Matus would hit .231 on the night, committing five attack errors across 39 total attacks. While it broke a string of four straight matches that saw the sophomore hit .340 or better, she continued her efficiency on the floor while playing multiple spots. She continues to climb the conference leaderboards as the season comes down the stretch, sitting fifth in kills and eighth in hitting percentage with four matches to play.
Joining her at the top of the leaderboards was freshman Ava Green, who set a new career-high with 14 kills. The freshman has served as a spark for the Cardinals over their last two matches, knocking down 23 kills between the two. After coming off her most efficient showing of her career against Shawnee State, where she hit .318, Green was able to get into double digit kills for just the second time in her career. Finishing right behind her was the Cardinal's most efficient hitter in senior Katie Wilking. Wilking finished with 11 kills on 24 total attacks, and did not commit a hitting error to finish with a .458 hitting percentage on the day. The senior continues to chase history coming down the stretch, needing just 62 kills to become the 17th player in program history to reach the 1,000 career kill plateau.
With four matches to go, the Cardinals once again have a chance to clinch their spot in the MEC Volleyball Tournament on Friday. Their magic number sits at 1 entering play, needing either a win against Charleston or a loss to Point Park to earn their spot in the tournament. The Cardinals currently sit at 8-3 in conference play and are tied with West Liberty for the #2 spot in the conference. With five matches left, and four of those coming against MEC North opponents, the Cardinals are looking to rack up the wins at the end of the season. They earned the #2 seed in last year's tournament, and look to get at least back to that level again in 2026.
The Match-up
The Cardinals and Golden Eagles are meeting for the 49th time in program history, with Wheeling leading the all-time series at 32-16. When they hit the road, the Cardinals are 10-3 all-time, compared to an 18-3 mark when they host the Golden Eagles. It has been back and forth over the last four matches, with the teams going 2-2 and having split their meetings in each of the last two seasons.
The last meeting between the two teams came back on November 20, 2025 in the MEC Quarterfinals, with Charleston earning the 3-2 win. Leading the way for Wheeling was Bella DeBarr, who finished with 16 kills, while Katie Wilking added 12. Former Cardinal Lexi Duplessis would finish with 25 assists, while Olivia Batch led the defense with 20 digs.
The Details
First serve for Friday's match is scheduled for 7 PM inside the Wehrle Innovation Center on the campus of the University of Charleston. You can watch the match live by clicking HERE or follow along with Live Stats by clicking HERE.
