Wittenberg Rolls to First Round Win Over Rose-Hulman Institute in First Round NCAA Match
Thursday, November 10, 2011
Entering its 16th consecutive NCAA Division III Volleyball Tournament, the experience of No. 5 Wittenberg was too much for newcomer Rose-Hulman as the Tigers defeated the Fightin’ Engineers 3-0 (25-15,25-10,25-11) in first round tournament play at Van Noord Arena in Grand Rapids,MI. Wittenberg now advances to the second round where they will face Heidelberg, who defeated Geneva 3-2 in a comeback victory earlier in the day.
In the first set, Wittenberg (32-3, 16-0 North Coast Athletic Conference) was able to jump out to an early 12-4 behind the play of senior Kimmie Dyer. RHIT would close the gap to 12-6, but would not come any closer as the Tigers would take the set 25-15.
Dyer, named to the Capital One Academic All District 7 first team, would continue to play well offensively, leading the Tigers with nine kills over the final two sets, both won by Wittenberg by scores of 25-10 and 25-11. Dyer added nine digs to go with her 13 kills. Freshmen Meghan Vodopich, the NCAC Newcomer of the Year, had 15 assists and eight digs for the Tigers, while junior Hallie Donathan added 17 assists.
“The first match you really don’t know what to expect,” said Wittenberg Head Coach Paco Labrador. “We spend a lot of time just preparing to play volleyball, and I think we did a good job of just taking care of our side of the court.”
Added Vodopich: “We played really scrappy on defense today. Playing a lot of tougher teams earlier in the season allowed us to see what we had to improve on.”
Rose-Hulman (24-9, 7-2 Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference) was led on offensive by junior Anna Lewer and senior Morgan Williams, who each had four kills. Lewer also added six digs while senior Leah Pelzel had 10 digs and eight assists.
“Wit’s a great team. We knew coming in we would be the underdog,” said RHIT Head Coach Brenda Goble, in her 16th year coaching for the Engineers. “I am so proud of the Rose-Hulman volleyball program this year. The girls worked diligently. The three seniors (Williams, Pelzel, Karah Hickman) have been through thick and thin, and have really turned this program around. We’ve had a great run, I hate that it has to end.”
Wittenberg will now face Heidelberg in its second round match, who it swept earlier in the year, at 4:30 p.m. ET on Friday.
