WINGATE, N.C. – For the first time since September 24, 2005, the Carson-Newman Eagles (22-5, 17-2 South Atlantic Conference) defeated the seventh-ranked Wingate Bulldogs (25-2, 18-1 SAC) in five sets, 17-25, 25-20, 28-26, 19-25 and 15-13 Saturday afternoon at Cuddy Arena snapping a string of 25 straight matches in the series that went the way of Wingate.

The Bulldogs had won 55 consecutive matches in league play dating back to a four-set loss at Lenoir-Rhyne on September 21, 2012.

"It was a heavyweight fight," head coach Dan Ahiers said. "Both teams should be proud. I've got to give a lot of credit to Wingate for a great match today. Shelton Collier is a great coach and I think he would agree that I am lucky to have the better players."

Carson-Newman fell behind early in the first set by pulled within a single point at 6-5 before Wingate reeled off six straight points. The Eagles could never close the gap to fewer than five points as the Bulldogs went on to the set victory holding Carson-Newman to a .062 attack percentage.

The second stanza was a stark contrast to the opening frame as the Eagles tallied a .324 attack percentage thanks to 13 assists from senior setter Kristen Pickett (Cleveland, Tenn.). The visiting unit went wire-to-wire maintaining a multiple point lead through much of the game. Leading 18-15, won four of the next six points to take a 22-17 advantage before tying the match at one.

The third set featured 10 ties and five lead changes. The largest lead through the first half of the set was three points by each side, but the Eagles used a 6-0 run to take a 20-14 advantage. Wingate clawed back into the match tying the score at 23. Each team nullified set points as the score moved to 25-25. The Bulldogs rejected a pair of set points before Carson-Newman earned the 2-1 edge on a kill by senior outside hitter Lauren Santarelli (Colorado Springs, Colo.) who led the way with six kills in the game.

Winagte locked in a fifth set with a multitude of runs to stave off defeat. An 8-2 run helped the Bulldogs gain separation to take a 12-6 lead. A 4-0 spurt and a 3-0 run had the home team on top 18-11 before a fifth set loomed. Senior outside hitter Rachel Harper (Chattanooga, Tenn.) notched five kills in the set.

The home team won the first two points of the fifth set, but Carson-Newman responded to tie the score at two before taking its first lead of the set at 4-3 on a kill from Santarelli. It was a lead that the Eagles never relinquished despite the fact that Wingate tied the score six times including at 13-13. A kill by Santarelli and an attack error from Abby Saehler led to pandemonium for the Eagle sideline.

Santarelli led the way with 15 kills on a .279 attack percentage to go along with four digs and three block assists.

Harper tallied her 10^th double-double of the season with 18 kills and 15 digs as well as three service aces and three assists.

Pickett added her 10^th double-double of the year with 49 assists and 19 digs while senior middle blocker Jenna Wilson (Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.) had 10 kills and 3.5 total blocks.

Wingate had a .231 attack percentage compared to the Eagles .223 in a match that pitted the top two teams in the SAC in that statistical category.

Setter Alison Cooke racked up 52 assists and seven digs while Susie Murach had 15 kills and five digs for Wingate.

The Eagles end the regular season slate with three home matches beginning Tuesday night against Lincoln Memorial for a 7:00 p.m. first serve from Holt Fieldhouse.

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