Tigers Open 2013 Season With Sweep Of Johns Hopkins

SPRINGFIELD, Ohio - The Wittenberg Tigers kicked off a promising 2013 season with a resounding 3-0 win over the Johns Hopkins Blue Jays on the first day of the Courtyard Marriott Wittenberg National Invitational.

Ranked No. 3 in the nation, the Tigers attacked at an efficient .255 clip for the match while holding Johns Hopkins to a meager .048 attack percentage. As always, Wittenberg varied the attack on offense and picked up key contributions throughout the line-up on defense as well.

The result was a lop-sided first set victory (25-9), followed by competitive sets of 25-23 and 25-19. The Blue Jays' best chance to turn the match came in the second set, but the Tigers rallied from a 19-15 deficit to claim 10 of the last 14 points.

The evolution of the collegiate career of senior Andrea Behling (Columbus, Ind./North) continued as she shifted to outside hitter and shined, finishing with 12 kills and a .258 attack percentage. A middle hitter by trade, Behling added a team-best 14 digs, matching the total of freshman libero Libbi Giuliano (Cincinnati, Ohio/McAuley), who was solid in her first collegiate starting assignment.

Sophomore Kara Seidenstricker (London, Ohio/Jonathan Alder) added 11 kills and a .308 attack percentage, and she also contributed eight digs. Also key to the offensive performance was the play of junior setter Meghan Vodopich (Canton, Ohio/Massillon Perry), who finished with six kills in 12 attempts without an error and a career-high 31 assists.

The Tigers continue the season-opening competition with matches against preseason No. 1 St. Thomas, the defending national champion, and No. 6 Emory, which defeated St. Thomas 3-2 in the tourney's opening match.