#2 Tampa Wins Easily in NCAA First Round

Tampa, Fla. - The second-ranked University of Tampa cruised to a first round victory in the NCAA South regional, defeating Wingate 3-0. The Spartans improve to 30-1 on the season as Wingate finishes their season at 25-8. The Spartans recorded game scores of 30-16, 30-23 and 30-12 to advance to the NCAA South Region semifinal.

Tampa came out swinging, posting a .375 attack percentage in game one while recording 16 kills. UT also held Wingate to a .103 attack percentage in game one. The Spartans had their best hitting game in the third, registering a .552 mark while Wingate was -.185.

Junior Erin Clark turned in a career day for Tampa, connecting on 14 kills on 19 attempts for a .684 attack percentage. Clark also registered two blocks. Freshman Alisha Green also had 11 kills in her first NCAA tournament match. A total of three Spartans hit over .400, including Clark, Green (.471) and Danielle MacDonald (.538).

Katelen Dixon led Tampa's defensive effort, leading the team with five blocks and nine digs. Camila Saade also recorded nine digs for the Spartans. Tampa also had 12 service aces as five different Spartans were credited with multiple aces. Gabriela Saade also had a team-high 38 assists.

Wingate was led by Molly Kerns, who had a team-high eight kills. Melissa Deluca had 17 assists while Amanda Siegrist had seven digs to lead Wingate. Rebecca Brezovec and Lauren Alley also lead the team with two blocks apiece.

The Spartans advance to the second round where they will meet a familiar foe in SSC rival Barry University. The match is scheduled to begin at 7:00 pm at the Bob Martinez Sports Center on the campus of the University of Tampa.