The Ohio Wesleyan Volleyball team has been crowned North Coast Atlantic Conference (NCAC) tournament champions for the first time since 1996.
With the win, Ohio Wesleyan receives the NCAC's automatic bid to the NCAA DIII Volleyball tournament, where the Bishops will make their first-ever NCAA Division III playoff appearance. They find out who they will face on Monday, November 18, during the NCAA selection show at 1 p.m.
Senior Claire Solberg was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player and was joined on the all-tournament team by junior Lily Bechina and sophomore Natalie Dieball.
Photo by Ohio Wesleyan Athletics
The Bishops kicked things off at the tournament with a semi-final match against DePauw University which they won by scores of 25-3, 25-23, and 25-19. They then went on to face Denison University in the final, where they battled through five sets to win ending with scores of 23-25, 25-9, 26-24, 31-33, and 15-11.
Ohio Wesleyan came out strong against a shaky DePauw team. The last time the two teams met was earlier in the season when Ohio Wesleyan won in five sets. All of the sets were close, with the winner of each set taking it by the necessary two points. As the higher seed, the Bishops were expected to do well but the dominance they showcased was elite.
The Bishops raced out to a 12-1 lead in set one over the Tigers, which they held onto comfortably. Dieball and Solberg dominated, with Dieball collecting four of the Bishop's five first points. Solberg collected four blocks in the set and Dieball dished out three aces. The Tigers were only able to get two more points as the Bishops powered through the set to win 25-3.
The three points allowed by Ohio Wesleyan in the first set broke the school record for the fewest points allowed in a set– which was previously five against Finlandia on Sept. 9, 2012.
In the second set, the Tigers battled back from the first. The teams played balanced, trading points back and forth with DePauw even taking a three-point lead at one point. However, Ohio Wesleyan scored five straight with kills from Solberg and Bechina, and a pair of aces from Dieball to take back the lead. The set stayed close at 22-21 but a set-ending kill from Dieball sealed the second set, 25-23.
As the third set started DePauw managed to get the first two points, the Bishops responded by scoring 12 straight points to comfortably take the lead. Senior Ava Kutilek served up 11 straight points with a pair of aces in the mix. The Tigers brought the set close with a 10-2 run to make it 21-19. The Bishops responded by scoring four points with two kills from Kutilek, and a kill each from Dieball and senior Grace Cummings. An ace by Kutilek sealed the set, 25-19, and ultimately the match.
Solberg finished with 11 kills and a team-high 10 blocks, with the latter figure tying the school record set by Kim Klumb in two games against Otterbein on Sept. 21, 1990, and equaled by Klumb against Bethany the following day and then by Megan Margala at Kenyon on Sept. 28, 2005.
When it came time to face Dension, the Bishops prepared for a tough five-set match which they ultimately prevailed in.
Photo by North Coast Atlantic Conference
Denison got on the board first in set one, racing to a 6-2 lead. A kill and a block by Solberg and service Dieball closed the gap to tie things up. Denison kept the advantage but Ohio Wesleyan held strong, going on a late 5-1 scoring run to make the score 24-23. Denison’s Maeve Perry sealed the first set for the Big Red with a kill that gave them the win.
The second set started quickly with sophomore Mason Campbell serving up back-to-back service aces for the Bishops. Ohio Wesleyan went on a 12-1 scoring run to give them a strong advantage with Kutilek notching three kills. Cummings wrapped up the set with an easy race to 25 while holding Dension at only nine points.
To kick off the third set, Denison scored two quick points before the Bishops went on a 7-0 scoring run with three service aces from Kutilek. The Big Red brought the game to a 12-12 tie but the Bishops were able to keep the lead in their favor. With set points against them, the Bishops scored three straight off of a kill from Kutilek and an ace from Campbell to win the set, 26-24.
Denison once again got on the board first with a 3-0 start but the Bishops were able to score four points with kills from Dieball to give them the lead in the fourth set. Denison battled back with a 6-0 run to give them an 18-17 advantage. From there, the teams traded points, tying the score 13 times before Denison was able to notch the win, 33-31, in the highest-scoring set in NCAC tournament history.
The fifth set was tied nine times early in the set before the Bishops scored three straight to give them a 12-9 lead. A block by Solberg and junior Bechina at 13-11 made it match point. A serve by junior Bella Guzzetta sealed the match, 15-11.
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