UNCW 3, Davidson 1 (25-18, 24-26, 25-19, 25-22)

After suffering a loss to Appalachian State on Saturday in their second match of the Springhill Suites Mayfaire Invitational, UNC Wilmington looked to redeem itself Sunday afternoon against Davidson. Following last night’s loss, mental preparation was one of head coach Amy Bambenek’s main strategies.

“This morning the first thing I told them is ‘Today is a new day,’” said Bambenek. “We had to make sure we didn’t hang on to the loss from the night before.”

It was a strategy the Seahawks would take to heart, defeating Davidson 3-1 and finishing in second place for the tournament.

Halle Hunt led the Seahawks (2-1) with 14 kills and a .364 hitting percentage. She was followed by Maddy Kline, with 10 kills, 13 digs, and a .184 hitting percentage to her credit.

Experience was thought to be the biggest factor going into today’s match, seeing as UNCW has only one senior in Sydney Brock. Davidson, on the other hand, fielded four seniors.

However, this did not deter the Seahawks from going toe-to-toe with their much more seasoned opponents.

“I think it shows a lot of promise for our really young team to be able to battle because I think offensively both teams really battled,” said Bambenek. “Those are the wins that you want to get — when both teams are equally very strong offensively.”

The Seahawks were up for the challenge. And with 11 lead changes and 26 ties over four sets, it never appeared that UNCW or the Wildcats (2-1) had a clear advantage.

UNCW’s next match will be on Friday when the Seahawks travel to Durham to take on Duke in the opening match of the 2017 Duke Invitational.