NASHVILLE, Tenn. – For the 2026 season, the Ohio Dominican Panthers (1-1) headed to Tennessee to participate in the Ray Thrasher Classic, hosted by Trevecca Nazarene University.
Friday's (August 28) contests saw the Panthers split with a pair of four set contests. In the first match, Ohio Dominican fell 3-1 to the Alabama-Huntsville Chargers (1-0) before winning match two 3-1 against the Christian Brothers Bucs (0-2).
Match #1 - L, 3-1 vs. Alabama-Huntsville
- Set 1: UAH 25-15
- The Panthers and the Chargers were tied 1-1 before Alabama-Huntsville took the lead without looking back for the rest of the set on an 11-4 run. ODU got within three points of the Chargers twice more but fell.Â
- Set 2: UAH 25-21
- ODU started with a 3-1 lead before the set was tied four times, leading to a 6-6 score. UAH took the lead with five straight points for an 11-6 lead and led by as many as eight points (18-10, 19-11, 21-13, 23-15). The Panthers went on a 6-1 spurt to get the lead down to 24-21, capped by an ace from Chloe Gels. UAH closed out the set after a timeout with the set point.Â
- Set 3: ODU 25-19
- Back-to-back kills from Ava Horn and Logan Rubel were met by two straight points for the Chargers, tying the set at two. ODU went on a 9-2Â rally to led 11-4. UAH trimmed the lead to 15-14 with a 10-4 run. ODU finished the set with ten of the final 15 points, winning set three 25-19.Â
- Set 4: UAH 25-22
- Trailing 3-0, the Panthers rallied to tie the set three times before taking a 7-5 lead on kills by Rubel and Evelyn Connor. The set was tied twice more with the Chargers regaining a 9-8 lead. UAH led for the remainder of the set. ODU made a last ditch rally, cutting a 23-17 lead to 24-22 with a 5-1 run. Gels forced a timeout but UAH won the match with a final block, 25-22.Â
- Individual Leaders
- Team Categories
- Kills:Â ODU 52, UAH 48
- Assists: ODU 50, UAH 47
- Aces: UAH 5, ODU 3
- Digs: ODU 60, UAH 58
- Blocks: UAH 14, ODU 4
- Hitting %: UAH .260, ODU .124
Match #2 - W, 3-1 vs. Christian Brothers
- Set 1: ODU 25-13
- Christian Brothers led 2-0 for their only lead of the set. Two aces by Lauren Dinunzi fueled a 5-0 run – part of a bigger 11-2 spurt with two additional aces by Rubel, a 11-4 lead. The Bucs got within 14-11 but ODU responded with an 11-2 run to end the set 25-13, adding four more aces in the process.
- Set 2: CBU 25-17
- Set 2 saw six ties and four lead changes over the course of it. The Panthers started off strong with a 5-1 lead but the Bucs followed with a 5-1 spurt to tie everything at six. The set was within three points either way until it was tied at 13. Six straight Bucs points allowed CBU to lead and win set two 25-17.
- Set 3: ODU 25-22
- Like set 2, ODU led 5-1 and led wire-to-wire in the set, leading by as many as eight (16-8). The Bucs made it interesting getting within one at 23-22. Annie Fincham and Gels went back-to-back on kills, giving the Panthers a 2-1 set lead.
- Set 4: ODU 25-21
- Christian Brothers led 1-0 early but then the set was tied four times in the first eight points. Nine straight ODU points with three aces from Gels and two kills by Horn gave ODU a 13-4 lead. CBU pushed back with a 12-4 run as they pulled within 17-16. ODU regained the momentum and cruised to a 25-21 set four win and the match.
- Individual Leaders
- Team Categories
- Kills:Â ODU 46, CBU 32
- Assists: ODU 42, UAH 28
- Aces: ODU 19, CBU 6
- Digs: ODU 50, CBU 44
- Blocks: CBU 10, ODU 1
- Hitting %: ODU .126, CBU .096
The Ray Thrasher Classic concludes on Saturday (August 29) with the Panthers taking on the host Trevecca Nazarene at 1:30 PM Eastern.
