#25 Wingate's historic season comes to an end with 3-0 Elite Eight loss to #9 UCM Thursday night

Louisville, Ky.----The 25th-ranked Wingate University Bulldog volleyball team had its magical season ended by number nine University of Central Missouri Thursday night in the national quarter-finals. The Jennies won by scores of 25-21, 25-18 and 25-19 to improve to 32-4 overall and advance to the national semi-finals. Wingate sees its 29-match winning streak come to an end, finishing the season 31-2 overall. It is the fourth consecutive season the Bulldogs have dropped only two matches.
          
“We accomplished our number one goal this year, which was to win the NCAA Regional,” head coach Shelton Collier says. “Our reward was the opportunity to go to the Elite Eight for the first time ever. Tonight, we played a very good team with six All-Americans; they certainly played like it. Realistically, there were a couple teams we could have drawn as quarter-final opponents where we would have had a legitimate shot at making the Final Four. Unfortunately, Central Missouri was not one of them. We are so proud of having such an incredible season. We were proud to represent our school in such a nationally prestigious event here at the Elite Eight.”
          
Junior middle hitter Paula Harris (Conway Springs, Kan.) had nine kills with a .409 hitting percentage to lead the way for the Jennies. Freshman outside hitter Taylor Goodness (Salina, Kan.) also had nine kills, while junior outside hitter Allie Huffman (Lee’s Summit, Mo.) added eight kills. Freshman setter Julia Bates (Leavenworth, Kan.) handed out 35 assists, while senior libero Rachel Fister (Labadie, Mo.) collected 21 digs.
          
Senior middle blocker Rebecca Bloemer (Louisville, Ky.) had a match-high 10 kills with a .667 hitting percentage, playing her final collegiate contest in her hometown. Senior outside hitter Lauren Billo (Orland Park, Ill.) and freshman outside hitter Cory McGowan (Pittsburgh, Pa.) had eight kills each for the Bulldogs, while McGowan added a team-high 12 digs. Senior setter Amanda Clark (Timberlake, N.C.) handed out 17 assists, while junior setter Liz Willis (Raleigh, N.C.) had 16 assists and eight digs.
          
A kill from Huffman gave Jennies a 12-8 lead in the opening set. McGowan answered with a kill to cut the lead to three. Central Missouri used a 3-0 run to take a 16-10 advantage, using three Wingate errors in the spurt. A Huffman kill put the Jennies on top 20-12. The ‘Dogs would not go away, getting kills from McGowan and redshirt freshman middle blocker Anna Hilton (Hickory, N.C.) to make it 21-17. A Bloemer kill and McGowan ace got Wingate to within three at 24-21. Goodness capped the opening frame with a kill.
          
A pair of Bloemer kills, along with a kill from sophomore middle blocker Grace Krauser (Louisville, Ky.), gave Wingate an 8-4 lead in the second set. The Jennies battled back, tying it at 11 on  a kill from Bradye Peniston (Wichita, Kan.), then taking a 12-11 lead on a Wingate error. A kill from Hilton, followed by a block from McGowan and a Krauser kill put the ‘Dogs back on top 14-12. Central Missouri again had the answer, taking a 17-16 lead on a Wingate error. The Bulldogs tied it at 17 on a Bloemer kill. The Jennies scored the next three points, taking a 20-17 lead on a Harris kill. Bloemer cut it to two with a kill, but Central Missouri scored the final five points to take the second set, finishing the frame on back-to-back aces.
          
The Jennies raced out to an 18-9 lead in the third frame, capped by kills from Harris and Goodness. Bloemer answered with back-to-back kills to cut the deficit to seven. A Harris kill made it 21-12. The Bulldogs got three straight kills, capped by back-to-back Billo kills, to make the score 21-15. Consecutive McGowan kills shaved the deficit to four at 22-18. The Jennies captured the match on a kill from Harris.
          
Central Missouri hit .297 for the night, with 45 kills and 12 errors in 111 attacks. Wingate hit .262, with 42 kills and 14 errors in 107 swings. The .297 hitting percentage is the highest Wingate has allowed an opponent to hit all season.
          
The Bulldogs now have an overall record of 131-8 since the start of the 2007 season. The corresponding .942 winning percentage leads all of Division II in that time span. The four seniors led Wingate to the most successful stretch in the history of South Atlantic Conference volleyball, culminating by becoming the first school in league history to go to the Elite Eight. The Bulldogs have won five consecutive SAC regular season and tournament titles; they are currently riding a 64-match conference winning streak.
          
“I can’t say enough about my senior class,” says Bloemer, who will remain at Wingate as the graduate assistant coach in 2011. “They have been so amazing over the past four years. I couldn’t ask for a better group of girls. (I believe) coming to Wingate is the greatest decision I’ve ever made.”
          
(Wingate University assistant sports information director Hugh Patton wrote this article. Patton is a 2006 Wingate graduate with a B.A. degree in Communication Studies.)