September 25, 2025

#21 Wingate comes to town to give Eagles their first chance at a ranked win since 2019

Carson-Newman volleyball has been winless against the Bulldogs in their last five outings, but with a successful start to the season, they look to turn the tides in the second home game of the year.

#21 Wingate

11-1,4-0 SAC

Carson-Newman

11-2,2-2 SAC

Final	1	2	3	T
#21 Wingate 11-1,4-0 SAC	25	25	25	3
Carson-Newman 11-2,2-2 SAC	23	14	10	0

JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. - Carson-Newman volleyball has been winless against the Bulldogs in their last five outings, but with a successful start to the season, they look to turn the tides in the second home game of the year.

It was a bounce-back of a Tuesday night for the Eagles, who, coming off the loss to Lenoir-Rhyne, demolished Tusculum at Pioneer Arena. Postgame, Cat Collins spoke about the confidence that should give her team coming into what will be the toughest game of the season.

The Wingate Bulldogs have built an empire on SAC volleyball. Wingate has appeared in the SAC Championship seven of the last ten years and has qualified for the NCAA regional each year of the previous decade. Wingate has won 18 of the last 19 regular-season SAC titles, adding 14 tournament championships in that span, with the seven region titles all coming since 2010. Wingate has ranked in the top 10 in the nation in winning percentage every year since 2007.

This season is shaping up to be no different for the Bulldogs, ranked #21 in the nation coming into Friday and 1st in the SAC Preseason Poll for the 20th consecutive season. Wingate returns reigning SAC Player of the Year Sydney Morland and AVCA Region Player of the Year. She also garnered second-team All-America honors. Morland finished in the top five nationally with a SAC and Wingate record .427 hitting percentage, averaging 2.70 kills and 0.85 blocks per set. Morland had 14 double-digit kill matches on the year.

They also return Maya Van Heyst, who was an All-SAC, All-Region, and All-American during the 2024 season. The first-team All-SAC and All-Region selection earned AVCA third-team All-American accolades. Van Heyst did it all for the Bulldogs, leading the team in assists and aces while ranking second in digs, fourth in blocks, and fifth in kills. Van Heyst ranked eighth in the nation with her four triple-doubles.

Finally, Gabby Saye and Emily Johnson were both All-Americans in 2024 as well. Saye had 11 matches with double-digit kills, hitting over .300 in eight of those contests, while Johnson hit .379 on the year, notching 2.53 kills per set with a team-high 0.90 blocks per set. She ranked second on the team in kills and second in the SAC in hitting percentage. Maddie Hoffman was a second-team SAC honoree in 2024 and has built upon that success. The senior currently ranks 10th in the nation in digs per set (5.58).

Coach Collins was looking for a bounce-back win, and she got it. The Eagles dominated the Pioneers to pick up their second SAC win and 7th sweep of the season. C-N dominated the competition with 42 kills to the Pioneers' 30 while holding Tusculum to a .121 hitting percentage.

Emerson Ahsmuhs was incredibly efficient, picking up 19 kills on 34 swings for a team-high .471 hitting percentage. Part of her success can be credited to Blair Cherry, who led the squad with 36 assists and a team-leading 8 digs. Cherry's 12.00 assists per set was the second-best mark she's hit this season. Bella Cardello showed up big on the block, combining with her teammates for six block assists.

Just about everyone in the SAC has had issues with Wingate in the conference's history. This matchup between the Eagles and Bulldogs will be the 74th all-time. The 'Dogs have a healthy handle on this series with a 56-16 lead and have won each of the last five matchups between the two. The previous time Carson-Newman beat the Bulldogs was in 2019 in the SAC Championship semifinal game.

The last two matchups between the Eagles and Bulldogs have taken five sets to settle, ultimately ending in Carson-Newman's demise both times. In the last ten matchups between the two teams, Carson-Newman has only won two games. The battles between these teams have ended matches that took more than three sets to settle 39 times, but also include 33 sweeps. The Eagles' first matchup against the Bulldogs was back in 1992, where they took the victory in four sets.

Holt Fieldhouse hasn't necessarily been an advantage for the C-N either. The Eagles have only won one time in their home gymnasium dating back to 2009. If Carson-Newman came out with the victory, this would be just the 9th loss that Wingate coach Lauren Tecavec would add to her record in the three seasons she has been head coach.

It was a historic year for the Bulldogs in 2024. At 31-3 overall, Wingate would lose only in the regular season to #21 West Florida and in five sets to LMU. Toward the end of the season, though, WU caught fire, sweeping their way through the SAC tournament and defeating Lenoir-Rhyne in the championship game. They took care of business in the NCAA Southeast Regional too, first downing Converse, then sweeping Augusta. Finally, they swept Landerto capture their seventh regional title in program history to advance to the NCAA Quarterfinals in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. They would ultimately fall to the eventual national champions in Lynn. This was Wingate's 13th 30-win season.

It was a historic year for all of Wingate Athletics last season. For the first time in program history, Wingate University has finished second in the NCAA Division II Learfield Directors' Cup. The Bulldogs

piled up a school-record 837.25 points to post the best finish in Wingate or SAC history. This marks the third straight year Wingate has finished in the top five in the Learfield Cup Standings. The Bulldogs also captured their 17th consecutive SAC Athletic Excellence Cup in 2025. Only Grand Valley State was ahead of the Bulldogs in the standings. The 'Dogs had nine top-10 finishes on the year, the second-most among all schools, trailing only Grand Valley State. The Bulldogs piled up six top-five national finishes in 2024-25, one of which was the volleyball team's fifth-place finish, which earned them 73 points.

It is safe to say that Mossy Creek is home to one of the best outside hitters in the nation. Emerson Ahsmuhs has ripped through every competitor the Eagles have faced this season. The sophomore has made leaps and bounds from her freshman season, where she was a member of the SAC All-Freshman team and a 2nd team All-SAC honoree.

The ten double-digit kill games this season have led the Eagles all but two matches. Ahsmuhs is averaging 4.56 kills per set, slotting her 1st in the conference and 6th nationally in the category.

The 28 blocks she chipped in also helped her garner 8th in the NCAA in points per set, with 5.07. To make things even sweeter, Ahsmuhs is one of the best defensive players in Division II. Her 4.27 digs per set are 6th in the conference and 93rd in the nation.

She was honored by the conference in the week of September 15th for her contributions and has continued to be the top producer for the Eagles. The sophomore has recorded 14 kills in her last eight games in a row.

Carson-Newman is going to need to be firing on all cylinders to pick up the win on Friday. It has been nearly six years since C-N has defeated a ranked team. The last win against a nationally ranked opponent was in an eerily similar fashion, when the Eagles beat the #21 Bulldogs at Holt Fieldhouse in the SAC Semifinals. Since that game, the Eagles have had seven opportunities to take down ranked opponents and have come up empty every time. Carson-Newman hasn't beaten a top ten team since they beat #7 Wingate back in 2014, and the Eagles have never taken down a top five team.