ASHLAND, Ohio – Ohio Dominican's volleyball team hung tough with host Ashland but fell 3-0 (23-25, 12-25, 23-25) in GLIAC play Saturday.

The setback dropped ODU to 12-15 (6-10 GLIAC), while the Eagles improved to 21-6 (11-5).

Senior Kristy Birkemeier (Columbus Grove, Ohio) and freshman Tory Thompson (Quincy, Ohio) both had nine kills and sophomore Caitlin Kusan (Westerville, Ohio) tallied seven while hitting .462. As a team, the Panthers hit .158, while the Eagles hit .217 as a squad.

There were six ties and three lead changes in the opening set, with ODU clawing back from an 18-14 deficit. A kill by sophomore Brianna Reder (Maineville, Ohio) made it 22-20, and ODU drew even at 23 on two kills by Birkemeier and another by junior Tara Winner (Versailles, Ohio). Ashland called a timeout, then rallied to close the set with two straight terminations.

The Panthers managed just eight kills in the second set as Ashland started the set on a 10-1 run. The Eagles hit .480 in the frame to take a 2-0 lead in the match.

ODU jumped out to a 10-5 advantage in the third set, but Ashland scored five straight to draw even. ODU regained a 15-12 lead on a Thompson kill, but the Eagles answered with an 8-1 surge to gain a 20-16 lead. Consecutive hitting errors by the Eagles drew the Panthers back within a point at 24-23, but a service error on that point ended the Panther comeback.

Freshman Darby Slavin (Columbus, Ohio) led ODU with 18 assists and Birkemeier had a team-best 15 digs.

Ohio Dominican's volleyball team will head to Canton next weekend to close out the season, starting at 7 p.m. Friday at Walsh.

Contact: Scott Miles
miless@ohiodominican.edu