Ohio Wesleyan 3, Oberlin 0
Defiance 3, Ohio Wesleyan 0

Sept. 5, 2008

Sophomore outside hitter Alexa Bean (Columbus/Upper Arlington) and senior middle hitter Janna Dagley (Beavercreek) led Ohio Wesleyan on the first day of its annual Bishop Invitational on Friday at Branch Rickey Arena.

Ohio Wesleyan won its first match of the day, defeating Oberlin by scores of 25-21, 25-22, 25-21. The Bishops came back later and were defeated by Defiance by scores of 25-23, 25-15, 25-19.

The Bishops led, 8-7, in the first set when the Bishops went on an 8-1 run that included a service ace by sophomore outside hitter Alexa Bean (Columbus/Upper Arlington), a kill by junior outside hitter Kristin Kovach (Chagrin Falls/Kenston) and a block by Dagley. Sophomore outside hitter Stacey Tighe (Lewis Center/Olentangy) and Dagley added kills as the Bishops extended their lead to 23-17 and were able to hold off a brief Yeowomen rally to close out the set.

In the second set, the Bishops never trailed, and extended a 10-9 lead to 16-10 behind Bean, who had a kill and a pair of service aces. Oberlin closed the gap to 20-19, but Tighe and Bean posted kills as Ohio Wesleyan stretched the lead to 23-20 before Bean closed out the match with an ace and a kill.

Ohio Wesleyan finished off the match in the third set, with Tighe, Bean and Dagley each posting kills down the stretch. Oberlin rallied to within 24-21, but sophomore outside hitter Jess Fowler (Swanton) posted a kill to end the set and the match.

Bean led the Bishops with 11 kills and shared the Bishop lead with 12 digs, while Dagley finished with 7 kills and a team-high 5 blocks. Sophomore setter Sarah Marshall (Lima/Senior) dished out 23 assists, and junior libero Katie Schlaudt (Holland, Mich.) also shared the team lead with 12 digs.

Against Defiance, the Bishops fought back from a 16-12 deficit in the first set as sophomore middle hitter Lainey Kekic (Canfield/Western Reserve) and Bean had kills and Dagley compiled a block and a pair of kills, the latter giving Ohio Wesleyan a 19-18 lead. The Bishops still led, 22-21, but the Yellow Jackets scored the next 3 points, and after a Bean kill brought Ohio Wesleyan within 24-23, Defiance got the next point to end the set.

The Yellow Jackets jumped to a 5-0 lead in the second set, but the Bishops came back to within 6-4 on back-to-back kills by Kekic. Ohio Wesleyan was still within 10-6 after a kill by Dagley, but the Yellow Jackets answered with a 13-5 run and went on to take the set by a score of 25-15.

In the third set, the Bishops were within 18-16 after kills by Tighe and Schlaudt, but Defiance got a pair of kills from Amy Simindinger during a 4-1 spurt that gave the Yellow Jackets some breathing room. Dagley's block helped the Bishops come back to within 22-19, but Defiance scored the next 3 points to end the set and the match.

Kekic paced the Bishop attack with 9 kills, with Bean and Dagley adding 7 kills apiece. Marshall had 16 assists, Kekic and Dagley had 5 blocks apiece, and Schlaudt led the Bishops with 7 digs.

The Bishop Invitational continues on Saturday at Branch Rickey Arena.