Wingate, N.C. – The Lewis University women's volleyball team ended the second day of the Bulldog Classic, hosted by Wingate University, with a pair of victories as they defeated Francis Marion, 3-2, and Coker, 3-1.
 
The Flyers ended the weekend with an overall record of 3-1 while the Cobras went 2-2 and the Patriots left Wingate, N.C., with a 1-3 record.  
 
HOW IT HAPPENED (VS FRANCIS MARION)
With the match tied 2-2 and headed to the fifth and final set, the two sides traded points before a kill by junior Lauren Buxton (Springfield, Ill./Pleasant Plains) spurred a 4-0 run that put Lewis ahead, 10-7. The Patriots responded with a 6-0 run of their own to move within two of winning, 13-10.
 
They Flyers had another run in them, this time using a 4-0 spurt that featured two kills from freshman Ann Kelly Velikov (Orvault, France/C.E.N.S.), to retake the lead, 14-13. Francis Marion tied the match 14-all on the very next play off a kill from Allison Miller. Still, the red and white were able to get the ball back on their side of the court as Velikov put down her 18th kill of the match to make it 15-14. Lewis closed the match on the very next play as they used a kill from junior Mary Zielinski (Palos Hills, Ill./Stagg) to take the set, 16-14, and seal the 3-2 match victory.
 
Earlier in the contest, the Flyers found themselves down three, 20-17, in the first set after an 8-2 run from the Patriots. A service error from Francis Marion kicked-off a 6-1 spurt for Lewis that put them within two of taking the first set, 23-21. The two sides exchanged the final four scores with O'Neil notching her third kill of the set to seal the 25-23 set victory and put the red and white ahead, 1-0.
 
The Flyers roared out of the gate to begin the second stanza as they score eight of the first 10 points. Lewis' offense never slowed down throughout the frame and extended their lead to as much as 11 after a Patriots attack error made it 22-11. Even with a late push from Francis Marion, Lewis held on for the 25-17 set victory and took a 2-0 lead.
 
The Patriots battled back as they held Lewis to a -.032 (8-9-31) hitting percentage in the third set and .158 (14-8-38) hitting percentage in the fourth set while hitting above .200 in both sets to tie the match, 2-2, and set the stage for the fifth and final set.
 
 
Gartner led Francis Marion with 16 kills while her teammate Mya Mendoza tallied 23 assists. Katie Floyd notched a match-high 21 digs for the Patriots in the loss. Francis Marion ended the day with an .178 (54-21-185) hitting percentage.
 
Velikov led Lewis with a match and season-best 18 kills while Newberry provided 16 of her own along with a team-best four total blocks. Freshman Kaileigh Krawiec (Roselle, Ill./Lake Park) dished out a match-high 36 assists while on the defensive side of the ball, four players had 10-or-more digs, led by 20 from junior Kynzie Lilly (Richmond, Texas/Southwest Baptist). As a team, Lewis ended the match hitting at a clip of .152 (61-33-184).
 
HOW IT HAPPENED (VS COKER)
Lewis carried their momentum from their first win of the day as they opened the first set against Coker by scoring eight of the first 11 points, capped by an ace from junior Oliva Opstad. The Lewis offense continued to churn and a 6-2 run midway through the frame helped seal the 25-19 first set win and let Lewis take a 1-0 lead.
 
The second set saw Lewis and Coker tied at 15 midway through the frame. The red and white claimed the lead for good on next point as a kill from Zielinski uncorked a 6-0 scoring run that made it a 21-15 contest. Coker scored the next two points, but Lewis closed the frame with four consecutive points to seal the 25-17 set two victory and move ahead, 2-0.
 
Lewis and Coker again found themselves in a close affair, this time tied 16-all. Coker took the lead for good as they scored five of the next seven points to take a 21-18 lead. The Flyers were able to get to within one of the Cobras later in the set, 22-21, after a Buxton kill, but Coker rattled off three consecutive points to win the third set, 25-21 and make it a 2-1 match.
 
The Flyers controlled the fourth set from the start as they scored five of the first seven points of the frame and later used an uninterrupted 5-0 run to go up by eight, 14-6. Lewis kept the Cobras at bay for the remainder of the set and sealed the 25-21 set four victory and 3-1 match victory off of a Newberry kill.
 
Addie Bitner led Coker with nine kills while Maddy Roberts provided 18 assists. On the defensive side of the ball, Cayla Gilmore tallied four total blocks while Meadow Morse amassed a match-best 23 digs.
 
Buxton and Zielinski led Lewis in kills with 17 and 15 respectivley against the Cobras while Krawiec eclipsed 40 kills for the second time this weekend with a season-high 42. Gubera notched 19 digs in the winning effort and four service aces and at the net, Newberry and O'Neil each amassed four total blocks. As a team, Lewis hit at a clip of .177 (57-28-164) compared to .059 (34-25-152) for Coker.

MATCH NOTES

• Lewis is now 2-0 against Francis Marion. It marked the first meeting against the Patriots since 2007. Today also marked the first meeting between Lewis and Coker in women's volleyball
• Newberry's 16 kills against Francis Marion represented a season-high
• Lewis is 3-1 to begin a year for the first time since 2023.
• Lewis needed more than 15 points to win in the fifth set for the first time since Nov. 22, 2024 against UMSL in the GLVC Championship Tournament. The Flyers defeated the Tritons in the fifth set by a final score of 17-15.
• Velikov 18 kills against Francis Marion were the most by any Lewis player in any match this weekend
• Gubera's four service aces against Coker tied her season-high which she set against No. 17 Wingate the night before. It also marks the most amount of service aces by any Lewis player in a match through four matches.
• Lewis held an opponent to a sub-.100 hitting percentage for the first time since they held William Jewell to a .027 clip on Oct. 5, 2024.

UP NEXT
Lewis will head to the Rocky Mountains to compete in the Colorado Premier Tournament from Sept. 12-13.

50 YEARS OF WOMEN'S ATHLETICS
Lewis University is also organizing several alumni and family events throughout the women's athletic seasons to commemorate this historic milestone. These special gatherings will provide an opportunity for former athletes, families, and supporters to reconnect and celebrate the achievements of women's sports at Lewis. The scheduled events include:

• Women's Soccer Alumni Day (Oct. 17)
• Women's Volleyball (Nov. 14)

---

For the latest news, scores, and updates on Lewis women's volleyball, visit LewisFlyers.com and follow the Flyers on social media at @Lewisuwvb on Instagram and @LewisWVBall on X.