NEWBERRY – The Newberry College women’s volleyball team upset the 10-time defending regular season South Atlantic Conference champion Wingate on Saturday afternoon at Eleazer Arena.
The 3-1 (25-23, 18-25, 25-17, 25-12) win snapped a 50-match losing streak against the No. 23 ranked Bulldogs.
Newberry moves to 11-10 and 8-5 in the SAC, while Wingate moves to 19-3, 11-2 in conference play. This is the first time Newberry has defeated the Bulldogs since becoming an NCAA Division II member.
“Wingate is the standard by which all SAC programs are measured. Any time you can play well enough to pick up a win against them, it is a special day. I am extremely happy for our players and coaches to be able to experience this. Hard work has its rewards,” said head coach Todd Hay.
Madison Darby-McClure led Newberry with a match-high 14 kills. Andie Meredith collected 10 kills and Sidra Triplett added eight kills. Both players recorded three block assists. Maggie Marsh dished out 35 assists and Mary Siebert had a match-high 26 digs.
Wingate led in the first set 6-3 before Newberry went on a 7-0 run to lead 14-9. The Bulldogs came back to tie the set at 20-20. Wingate moved ahead 22-21 before Toni-Anne Whitlow’s ace tied the set at 22-22. After a Wolves attack error, Meredith landed a kill to tie the set again at 23-23. After a Wingate error, Meredith and Triplett scored the block assist to give Newberry the 25-23 set win.
Newberry got off to a good start in set two, leading 11-5. A 9-2 Wingate run gave the Bulldogs a 14-13 lead. Wingate never trailed again in the set and went on to win by a score of 25-18.
The Wolves once again got off to a hot start, starting the third set with a 7-0 run. The Bulldogs answered back to pull within 11-9. Newberry rattled off a 5-0 run led by Meredith to lead 19-12. Wingate attempted a late rally but Darby-McClure’s kill gave Newberry a 25-17 set win.
Newberry pulled out to a slim advantage in the fourth set, leading 8-6. The Wolves notched an 8-1 run to lead 16-7 midway through the set. When Wingate looked to be making a comeback, Newberry responded with a 5-0 run to lead 23-11. Triplett secured the upset for Newberry with a kill, giving the Wolves a 25-12 set four win.
Newberry travels to SAC rival Anderson (12-9, 8-5 SAC) on Tuesday. The match begins at 7 p.m.
On Friday in Hartsville, Newberry College notched a 3-0 (25-17, 25-17, 25-21) sweep over Coker (9-9, 3-9 SAC) in SAC play at the DeLoach Center.
Madison Darby-McClure posted a match-high 13 kills. Logan Hayward notched a double-double of 11 kills and 16 digs and Andie Meredith collected 10 kills. Hayward also had four solo blocks. Maggie Marsh dished out 41 assists and Mary Siebert posted a match-high 24 digs.