NEWBERRY – The Wolves (6-6, 1-4 SAC) match against Tusculum went into five sets Saturday evening, but this time, coming out victorious.
 
This was a familiar territory for the Wolves as their previous two match have gone into five sets. Newberry posted sets of 25-22, 29-31, 18-25, 25-21 and 15-10.
 
"This week was a bit of a coming-of-age story for our program," said Head Coach Ross Kessler. "We've been working hard, grinding it out and learning week by week. We've faced down some extremely tough competition this week and we're right in the fight, competing at a high level."
 
The Wolves had contributions from everyone on the court with three players finishing with double-doubles. Vanessa Blas led the way with 15 kills and 14 digs. Taylor Garrison had a team-high 29 assists and 16 digs. Olivia Kozemko round out the players posting a double-double with 26 assists and 18 digs. The team had five players post double digit figures in kills with 101 as a team.
 
Zoe Dinkins and Toni-Anne Whitlow were great on the offensive side of the court, both with 15 kills as well. Dinkins picked her spots on the court, hitting .500 on 24 total swings. Dinkins also made her presence felt on defense, finishing with three solo blocks and three block assists.
 
"Zoe has been huge for us this week," Kessler said. "She's an absolute monster at the net. She is atop the conference in blocks per set and is top three in hitting percentage. It's always exciting to see a young player really turn it up a notch and she's doing an excellent job!"
 
After coming off two consecutive five set matches, the Wolves had to dig down deep if they wanted to have a chance at winning this match. With the second set being extended and falling in the third, Newberry wasn't going to be counted out of this one. The Wolves played neck and neck with the Pioneers with neither gaining any ground. Newberry went on a 6-0 run with Dinkins getting four of the six points all by the way of kills. With the score at 22-15, Tusculum halted the run and had a five point swing the other way. The Wolves came out victorious on the set with an error from the Pioneers for the match point.
 
"Getting our first conference win tonight in front of our home crowd is a big weight off our shoulders," continued Kessler. "It feels good and we'd love to thank the fans for their love and support of."
 
The Wolves look to keep the momentum going as Carson-Newman comes to Eleazer Arena next Monday, Sept. 24. This is match was rescheduled from its original date on Sept. 14.