CEDARVILLE, OH - After defeating the #6 Ashland Eagles inside Alumni Hall in the G-MAC quarterfinals, 3–0, the #3-ranked Ohio Dominican Panthers faced the #2-ranked Findlay Oilers inside the Callan Athletic Center at Cedarville University in the semifinals. Earlier in the season, the Panthers had fallen to the Oilers, but this time ODU responded with a dominant 3–1 victory, marking their third straight appearance in the G-MAC Championship.
Panther leaders included freshman Logan Rubel, who stepped up on offense with 16 kills. Right behind her was Ashley Aselage, a dominant presence at the net, contributing 15 kills and five blocks. Jenna Peters rounded out the top three attackers with 14 kills. Ava Horn also had a strong night, leading the team with six blocks. Setter Saige Avery delivered 28 assists, along with an ace and 12 digs. The back row played big as usual, with libero Christen Tarter recording 14 digs and Lauren Dinunzi adding 11 digs and two assists.
SET BREAKDOWN
The first set was back and forth until the very end, heading into extra points. Both offenses traded points constantly, with ties at 14–14 mid-set and 20–20. Logan Rubel opened up the offense for the Panthers with several hard kills, including one to tie the score at 21–21. With the set knotted at 24–24, Findlay pushed through the final two points to secure a critical set-one win.
Veteran composure showed in set two as the Panthers settled in, though not without a fight. The scoring remained tight again until Findlay sparked a seven-point rally at a crucial moment, pulling ahead 21–15. A service error halted the run, giving ODU the opening they needed to ignite their own five-point surge and close the gap to 21–20. Facing more adversity at 24–22 in favor of Findlay, the Panthers flipped the momentum behind a four-point rally led by Gabrielle Kirker, who delivered a huge ace to tie it at 24–24 and later closed out the set. ODU took set two, 26–24, and seized the momentum.
In the third set, the Panthers entered with even more energy, opening with a six-point rally to grab a 9–5 lead. A later 5–1 run stretched the advantage to 16–8. Findlay clawed back to narrow it to 19–15, but ODU stamped the set with authority, fueled by big kills from Ashley Aselage and Rubel, clinching a 25–15 victory.
Set four brought another nail-biter inside the Callan Athletic Center. ODU jumped out to a 13–9 lead before UF responded with a three-point run. The Panthers kept their advantage, but Findlay eventually closed the gap to 21–20 and then moved ahead 22–21. Once again, ODU answered with resilience, unleashing a four-point rally behind kills from Peters and Rubel to secure the match and send the program to its third straight G-MAC Championship appearance.
NEXT
The Panthers will face the conference's #1 seed and tournament host, the Cedarville Yellow Jackets, inside the Callan Athletic Center for a 1 p.m. matchup tomorrow.
