SPRINGFIELD, Ohio – November 12, 2024 – Hiram saw its season come to an end on Tuesday evening, as a memorable 2024 campaign was cut short by the Wittenberg Tigers in the quarterfinals of the NCAC Tournament inside Pam Smith Evans Arena: 25-22, 25-13, 25-18.

The match officially marked the 24^th straight NCAC Tournament appearance for the program, an impressive streak that dates back to the turn of the century.

Cate Maguire led the Terriers with seven kills, while Kelly Hoffman had 18 assists and Sophia Grdina had 10 digs. Kayla Franks also filled the stat sheet for six kills, eight digs and a pair of service aces. Wittenberg's Alana Bartulovic led all student-athletes in the match with 21 kills.

Hiram was in playoff form in the early stages of the match, jumping out to a 12-9 lead behind a 6-1 scoring run. Franks, Emily Richardson and Andrya Hanmore each had a kill during that span.

Wittenberg responded by score the next six points, with Bartulovic notching a pair of kills to help propel her team back in front. Hiram hung around late, scoring five of the last eight points in the set, but a block by Clare O'Malley put the Terriers in a one-set hole.

The Tigers then put together one of the best sets in all of Division III this season, recording 20 kills and zero attack errors during that span. Wittenberg finished the second set with a hitting percentage of .500, shifting the momentum of the match and claiming a 2-0 lead.

Maguire had three kills in the fifth set and the Hiram defense continued to fight against a team that had just 10 attack errors for the entire match. Wittenberg wouldn't trail for the entire set, closing out the match and securing a spot in the semifinals at Denison Friday.

It wraps up another strong season for Hiram women's volleyball, a program that will move on to the Presidents' Athletic Conference in 2025. The Terriers finish their time in the North Coast Athletic Conference with an NCAC Tournament title in 2006, as well as regular-season titles in 2005 and 2010.

The NCAC will announce its all-conference selections for the team later this month.

Hiram will turn its attention to the offseason, where a deep roster will look to prepare for what figures to be another thrilling season in the fall of 2025 under head coach Brittany Dye.