Salem, VA. — North Carolina Wesleyan closed out the Maroon Classic on a high note Saturday morning, defeating Hollins University 3-1 at the Cregger Center to finish the final day of the tournament with back-to-back victories.
The Battling Bishops came out strong, taking each of the first two sets by identical 25-18 scores. Wesleyan hit .306 in the second frame and carried a 2-0 advantage into the third. Hollins responded with a 25-22 win to extend the match, but the Bishops answered immediately and closed things out with another 25-18 victory in the fourth.
The victory was highlighted by a major career milestone for Emilee Wilson, who reached 1,000 career assists during the match. Wilson continued to be the driving force behind the Wesleyan offense, finishing with 41 assists to push her past the 1,000-assist mark for her career. She also added 12 digs, three service aces and four kills in an outstanding all-around performance.
Wilson's milestone marked another memorable achievement for the Battling Bishops during the early portion of the season and added an extra significance to Wesleyan's final match of the Maroon Classic.
Brooklynn Covic and Savannah Banks led the Wesleyan attack with 13 kills apiece. Covic was especially efficient, hitting .478 on 23 attempts, while Banks added a .214 hitting percentage. Ashley Hinton finished with 10 kills and made a major impact from the service line with eight aces.
Jadyn Smith led the defensive effort with 14 digs and also contributed three aces, while Chloe Baggett added four aces of her own.
Wesleyan finished the match with 51 kills, 50 assists, 22 service aces and 67 digs while hitting .203 as a team. The Bishops also held Hollins to 42 kills and just seven service aces.
With the victory, North Carolina Wesleyan improved to 4-5 overall and wrapped up the Maroon Classic with consecutive wins over Randolph and Hollins.
