ELMHURST, Ill. -- Washington (Mo.) advanced to the second round of the NCAA Division III tournament with a 25-23, 25-23, 25-22 win against Wisconsin-Whitewater in the first round Thursday evening.
Washington U. improved to 27-7 overall with the win. The Bears face the winner of Thursday’s final first-round match between host No. 5 Elmhurst and Dominican (Ill.).
Washington U. hit .208 in the match, including .300 in the second set. The Bears finished with seven ace serves and eight blocks, and were helped by six service errors by UW-Whitewater in the match. Dupont tallied a match-high 13 kills, while hitting .417, and added three blocks and an ace serve. Sheredy added 12 kills, two aces and five digs. Udenze had a big match for the Bears with seven kills and no errors on 14 swings, while also posting a career-high five blocks.
Nelligan also finished with five blocks and had five kills while hitting .364. Sophomore Cassie Wang recorded 20 assists and two aces, while sophomore Allison Zastrow added 13 assists and two blocks. Freshman Kalehua Katagiri posted a match-high 23 digs, including 11 in the first set, which was a season high for her in a three-set match.
