The University of Virginia's College at Wise Athletics

WISE -- UVA Wise returned to their winning ways as they swept Mars Hill 3-0 in South Atlantic Conference play Friday evening, winning 25-16, 25-19, 25-22. The Cavaliers finished with 50 kills and a .257 hitting percentage while holding the Lions to 36 kills and a .127 percentage. They also out-dug the Lions by a 74-67 margin, including a milestone-setting 21 digs from senior Abigail Curtis.

Curtis surpassed the 1,500 career digs mark in the second set, becoming only the third Highland Cavalier to have that many or more digs. The other two were UVA Wise Athletic Hall of Fame student-athletes Brittney Lawson (2080, 2005-08) and Kari Sparks (1755, 2001-04), who lead Curtis in the program's all-time digs list. For a comparison, 1,500 digs would place her third all-time at Tennessee, fifth at Michigan, sixth at Virginia, Nebraska, and Kentucky, and seventh at North Carolina. 

INSIDE THE MATCHUP
Result: UVA Wise 3, Mars Hill 0
Records: UVA Wise (5-6, 4-4 SAC); Mars Hill (7-8, 2-5 SAC)
Location: Wise, VA | David J. Prior Convocation Center

HOW IT HAPPENED
First Set
The Cavaliers opened the first set by moving in front 7-3, getting kills from Braelynn Williams and Skye Williams and consecutive Lions attack errors during Riley Brandon's serve. The Lions worked back within 10-9 as Morgan Yoder, Ioana Poenaru and Alyssa Kornegay recorded kills, but the Cavaliers answered from a 12-10 score with four straight points on Abigail Curtis' serve, including a Riley Brandon/Annabelle Dowell block and a Dowell kill, to lead 16-10. Maggy Sechrist put down three kills after that stretch, Olivia Amos added a kill for 21-13, and Brandon finished two of the final three Cavalier points as UVA Wise took the set 25-16.

Second Set
The second set stayed tight early, with the Cavaliers getting kills from Riley Brandon, Skye Williams, Annabelle Dowell and Sechrist as they moved ahead 8-7. Sechrist had back-to-back kills and Amos served consecutive aces to push the lead to 12-7, but the Lions answered with three straight points to get back within 12-10. The Cavaliers kept the margin from tightening further behind kills from Sechrist, Braelynn Williams, Dowell and Skye Williams, then moved ahead 23-17 after a Lions attack error and consecutive Sechrist kills. The Lions scored the next two points, but Brandon finished the set with back-to-back kills, including the final one from Amos, to give the Cavaliers a 25-19 win.

Third Set
The Lions scored the first four points of the third set, including an Alyssa Kornegay ace and two blocks involving Pamela Guzman and Skylar Ogden, and after Sechrist put the Cavaliers on the board, the Lions pushed the lead to 7-1 on an Ioana Poenaru kill. UVA Wise worked back with kills from Skye Williams, Mable James, Braelynn Williams and Sechrist to get within 12-10, then later erased a 14-12 deficit as Sechrist and Riley Brandon put down kills before Braelynn Williams and Skye Williams combined on a block for a 15-14 lead. The set stayed within two points from there, with the Lions answering through kills by Guzman, Morgan Yoder and Megan Lee Prezio before moving back in front 22-21. Sechrist tied it with a kill, and the Cavaliers closed the set with an Ogden attack error, a Kornegay bad set and Sechrist's kill from Abigail Curtis for a 25-22 win.

GETTING WISE
- Sechrist finished with her third straight double-double with 18 kills and 16 digs, totaling 18 points. She achieved a season-high in both kills and digs and her 18 kills were the most in a three-set match.
- Amos had her fourth double-double of the season as she recorded 39 assists, 12 digs and two service aces.
- Abigail Curtis led the Cavaliers with 21 digs and added five assists. She now has 1,505 for her career.
- Skye Williams added 12 kills on a .355 hitting percentage and collected eight digs.
- The team's hitting percentage of .267 is the third best of the season and their 50 kills tie for the most in a three-set match this year.
- The team's 47 assists and 74 digs are both season highs for three-set matches.
- The team improved their series record against Mars Hill to 2-18 all time and was their second straight win over the Lions.

UP NEXT
The Highland Cavaliers renew their oldest rivalry when they host Tusculum on Saturday, Sept. 26, at 2 p.m. on The Quillen Court. The two teams first met in the program's first match, a 2-0 win by then-Clinch Valley in Greear Gym on November 2, 1969. It will also be Officials Appreciation Day, an event sponsored by the American Volleyball Coaches Association that shows the officials at all levels of the sport that girls and women support and appreciate volleyball officials.
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