GREENWOOD - The Lander volleyball team battled No. 13 Wingate through a pair of tightly contested opening sets Friday evening before falling 3-0 on day two of the Redderson Invitational inside Finis Horne Arena.
The Bearcats (1-1) fell 25-23, 26-24 and 25-18 to the Bulldogs (2-0), who entered the season ranked No. 13 nationally by the AVCA/TARAFLEX Division II Preseason Poll and were picked second in the South Atlantic Conference preseason coaches poll.
Quinn Butler led the Lander offense with 10 kills on a .281 hitting percentage while adding 10 digs to record her second double-double in as many matches to open the season. Amelia May put down six kills without an error on 15 attacks to hit .400, while Olivia Shaw continued a strong start to her Lander career with six kills on 10 attacks for a team-best .500 hitting percentage and three blocks.
Madeline Green totaled 19 assists, two service aces and two blocks, while Sam Alwardt anchored the Bearcat defense with a match-high and career-best 20 digs. Alwardt has recorded 37 digs through the first two matches of the season after collecting 17 in Thursday's season-opening win over Converse.
Lander scored the opening point of the match before Wingate responded and held the advantage through the early portion of the first set. The Bearcats continued to battle and eventually regained the lead at 14-13, their first advantage since 1-0. Neither team was able to pull away from there, but the Bulldogs did enough late to take the opening frame 25-23. Wingate recorded 18 kills in the set, while Lander held the Bulldogs to a .188 hitting percentage.
The Bulldogs appeared poised to take control of the second set after building a 22-14 advantage, but the Bearcats responded with their biggest run of the night. Lander rattled off seven consecutive points to pull within one at 22-21 and eventually fought its way to a 24-24 tie. Wingate answered with the final two points to escape with a 26-24 victory and take a 2-0 lead in the match.
Lander produced its best offensive set of the night in the third, recording 12 kills and hitting .229. Wingate countered with its most efficient frame, committing just two attack errors and hitting .263. The Bulldogs used the advantage to pull away for a 25-18 victory and complete the sweep.
Despite the result, Lander finished with a slightly higher hitting percentage than Wingate, .183 to .181. The Bulldogs held advantages in kills (44-33), service aces (9-4), blocks (6-5), assists (41-30) and digs (57-53).
The Bearcats move to 1-1 on the season after opening the year with a 3-1 victory over Converse on Thursday night. Lander will close out the Redderson Invitational on Saturday with a 5:30 p.m. matchup against UVA Wise.Â
