COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio Dominican volleyball team are set to begin Great Midwest Athletic Conference play this Thursday and Friday evening. The Panthers take their southern swing to Trevecca Nazarene and Kentucky Wesleyan.

The Black and Gold enter conference play with a 3-3 mark through their opening tournaments. In the first weekend, ODU went 2-1 and then went 1-2 last weekend at the Wildcat Den Classic hosted by Daemen University.

About Ohio Dominican

For the second time this season, junior Lauren Lucas (Grove City, Ohio) was named to an All-Tournament Team for her performance. Lucas netted 33 kills in the 12 sets she appeared in. The outside hitter added 19 digs and eight blocks in New York. She also had two service aces.

Joining her on the All-Tournament Team was Ashley Aselage (Tipp City, Ohio). The sophomore led the way for the Panthers with 34 kills, an average of 2.83 kills per set. Aselage snagged six digs and three blocks as well. Fellow sophomore Jenna Peters (Vermilion, Ohio) grabbed 33 kills, 10 digs, and four blocks.

On the backline, senior Kelsey Shoup (Dalton, Ohio) recorded 48 digs. Shoup averaged 4.00 digs per set and is ranked fifth in the conference with 113 total digs. The senior had two service aces and eight assists. Following her was Alexis Keipert (Burlington, Ky.) with 29 digs. The Kentucky native added four service aces.

Saige Avery (Yorkville, Ill.) collected 73 assists, averaging 6.08 per set over the weekend. Avery led the team with nine service aces and had 23 digs. The sophomore also added six kills. Fellow sophomore Bailey Christiansen (Delaware, Ohio) also registered six kills and had seven blocks at the net.

About Trevecca Nazarene

The Trojans head into Thursday with a 3-6 record and coming off a four game losing streak at the Alabama-Huntsville Classic last Friday and Saturday. TNU lost 3-0 to Anderson and Barry while losing 3-2 to Montevallo and Alabama-Huntsville.

Leading the way for the Purple and White is Emma Titus with 95 total kills. The junior averages 3.09 kills per set. At the net, Reese Payne has 30 blocks, ranking fourth in the G-MAC. Senior libero Katie Crutchfield sits right behind Shoup in the G-MAC standings with 105 total digs, averaging 3.09 digs per set. Fellow senior Emilee McDonald has a total of 227 assists on the year, an average of 7.09 assists per set.

The Trojans hold a 6-5 record over the Panthers, dating back to 2011. Trevecca has won the last three meetings, 3-1, 3-0, and 3-2. The two will meet again in Columbus the first weekend of November.

About Ky. Wesleyan

The Purple Panthers start conference play a 1-7 mark. KWC picked up their first win of the 2023 season at the Missouri S&T Miner Invitational this past weekend, defeating Lake Superior State, 3-1.

Sophomore Olivia Patton had netted a team high of 64 kills, averaging 2.46 kills per set. Ranking sixth in assists in the conference is Julia Kupper with 214. The junior averages 7.93 assists per set and has 15 service aces. Kupper is also second on the team with 45 digs.

The battle between the Panthers dates back to the 2015 season with the Black and Gold holding a 6-5 record over the Purple and White. ODU has won the last five contests, going back to the 2021 spring season. The two will battle again on Sunbury Road in November.

Game Time

First serve is set for 7:00 PM ET on Thursday evening from the Trojan Fieldhouse. On Friday evening, the match is set to begin at 7:00 PM ET from Woodward Health and Recreation Center.