SALISBURY, NC – UVA Wise closed out their regular season with an impressive 3-0 sweep of Catawba in Goodman Arena Friday evening in what might be one of the biggest wins in recent program history. Not only was it the program's first-ever win over Catawba, but it puts them on the cusp of postseason play.
With the win and a loss by Newberry to Mars Hill tonight, the Highland Cavaliers will now need Newberry to win tomorrow over local UVA Wise rival Emory & Henry (a win-win situation for UVA Wise fans) to force a tiebreaker scenario that, should it happen, would see them earn the program's first-ever berth in the South Atlantic Conference Volleyball Tournament, which begins next week.
INSIDE THE MATCHUP
Result: UVA Wise 3, Catawba 0
Records: UVA Wise (12-15, 6-12 SAC); Catawba (4-21, 2-16 SAC)
Location: Salisbury, NC | Goodman Arena
HOW IT HAPPENED
- The Highland Cavaliers rolled out to the 5-0 lead to open the match. Catawba went on a 9-2 run to take the 9-7 lead. UVA Wise battled back via kills by
Kaylee Scarce,
Abigail Curtis, and
Mailea Hufnagel to tie the set at 10-10. A block by Hufnagel and
Serina Petersen then helped the Cavs to take a lead that they would never relinquish as they outscored the Catawba Indians 15-4 down the stretch to claim the 25-14 set win.
- A kill by
Cassidy Farley put the Cavs ahead to open the second set, and although Catawba would tie the set at 1-1 and 2-2, a
Kaylee Scarce kill sparked a 10-1 run and UVA Wise never looked back as they rolled past Catawba 25-11.
- Catawba was also playing in their season finale and they would make the third set a hard-fought affair. The lead would see-saw back and forth several times with a total of 10 ties and three lead changes before a kill by Scarce broke the 21-21 tie. An ace by Farley and two Catawba attack errors sealed the 25-21 victory for the Cavs.
- Senior Jordan Danielson led Catawba in her final match with eight kills. Fellow senior Rachel Gonzales added seven kills. Haley Moffett had 13 assists, and senior Natalie Rehm had seven blocks. Riannel Arevalo, another senior, and Mya Benfield each had 13 digs.
GETTING WISE
- Scarce (10 kills, 10 digs) had her tenth double-double of the season (the 21
st of her career) in the match.
Riley Brandon and Farley had six kills apiece.
-
Piper Suddeth had 19 assists and
Lily Gutierrez had ten.
- Curtis led all players with 17 digs, while
Morgan Blevins had 12.
- As a team, the Cavs hit .179 and held Catawba to a .000 hitting percentage.
UP NEXT
UVA Wise will have to wait and see the outcome of the Newberry vs. Emory & Henry match tomorrow at 6 p.m.
If the Wasps win, tonight's match was the final match for
Cassidy Farley,
Kaylee Scarce,
Dannah Persinger,
Morgan Blevins,
Lauren Montes,
Lily Gutierrez,
Hannah McAmis, and
Charlee Hobbs.
If the Wolves win, just when we thought we were out (of the SAC Tournament) – they pull us back in. The team earns their first SAC Tournament berth and the fourth conference tournament appearance since joining the NCAA Division II. They played in the Mountain East Conference Tournament in 2013, 2015, and 2016.
Brackets for the SAC Tournament will be announced following the completion of the Newberry / E&H and Mars Hill / Coker matches tomorrow evening.
