Women's Volleyball | 10/9/2018 9:38:00 PM

Box Score     WHEELING, W.Va. – The West Liberty University volleyball team got off to a fast start here Tuesday night but couldn't sustain the momentum as No. 20 Wheeling Jesuit stormed back to claim a 3-1 victory in a meeting of Mountain East Conference unbeatens at the McDonough Center.
    Coach Kayla Mull's Hilltoppers (17-5, 6-1) scored 11 of the first 12 points in the opening set and never looked back in coasting to a 25-20 win in the battle for sole possession of first place in the MEC standings.
    Dominating play at the net for long stretches, the Black and Gold picked up where they had left off in set number two and jetted out to an 11-3 lead. That's when the host Cardinals (19-3, 6-0), who have never lost an MEC match since the league's inception, dug in their heels.
    Wheeling Jesuit battled back to forge the first tie of the set at 20-20 and the teams traded sideouts  for the next few points. West Liberty served for the set at 25-24 but WJU's Makenna Babb came through with a kill to keep the hosts alive and the Cardinals scored the next two points to square the match.
    Jesuit controlled the third set throughout, jumping out to an 11-1 lead and keeping their foot on the gas for the duration of a 25-12 romp, but the Hilltoppers weren't finished.
    Neither team led by more than three points in the fourth set but with West Liberty holding a late 18-17 lead, the Cardinals reeled off eight of the next nine points to close out the match.
    Madison Clayton paced the Hilltoppers with 10 kills, 5 blocks and a service ace while Stephanie Leonard added 9 kills and 5 blocks to go along with 9 kills and 3 blocks from Olivia Baumhoer and 8 kills and 4 blocks from Raimey Benson. Caitlin Clarke chipped in with 7 kills, 10 digs and a pair of blocks while freshman Abbi Gillson contributed 6 kills and a match-high 8 blocks.
    Kendall Souder and Renee Lemke finished with 24 and 19 assists, respectively, while Kailee Cunningham had a team-high 27 digs.
    The Lady Hilltoppers face another stiff road challenge on Friday when they head south to take on the University of Charleston in a 7 p.m. match.