Box Score
Ohio Wesleyan 3, DePauw 0

Sophomore outside hitter Melissa Murray (Chardon/Notre Dame-Cathedral Latin) led the Ohio Wesleyan offense with 13 kills as the third-seeded Bishops swept sixth-seeded DePauw in a quarterfinal match of the North Coast Athletic Conference tournament on Friday in Granville.

The Bishops won the match by scores of 25-21, 25-14, 28-26.  Ohio Wesleyan advances to the tournament semifinals to face second-seeded Wittenberg at 2 p.m. on Saturday in Granville.

Ohio Wesleyan went on a 6-0 run to take the lead for good in the first set, getting kills from freshman middle blocker Claire Solberg (Huron) and junior outside hitter Eliza Richardson (Lakewood) and a pair of blocks from freshman middle blocker Ava Kutilek (Wilmette, Ill./New Trier) and sophomore setter Abby Thierauf (Cincinnati/Milford) in turning a 14-13 deficit into a 19-14 lead.  The Tigers pulled within 23-21, but sophomore outside hitter Kaitlyn Peters (Fort Wayne, Ind./Homestead) got the final point to give the Bishops the set.

Murray and Kutilek had 2 kills apiece as the Bishops raced to an 11-1 lead in the second set, with sophomore defensive specialist Alex Disbro (Guilford, Ind./East Central) contributing a pair of aces during the run.  DePauw countered with a 6-0 burst that included a pair of aces from Avery Christy, but Ohio Wesleyan assembled a 7-1 run that featured a kill and an ace by Peters.  Murray and freshman outside hitter Natalie Buravlov (Aurora, Colo./Grandview) each had a pair of kills down the stretch to wrap up the set and give the Bishops a 2-0 lead.

Solberg and Thierauf teamed up on a block to break a 5-5 tie and kick off a 9-3 run in the third set, with Solberg adding 2 more kills and Thierauf another.  The Bishops still led, 19-16, but DePauw rallied for a 20-19 lead as Grace Filbrun zipped 3 consecutive service aces.  The teams traded points until the score was tied at 26, and then Solberg and Kutilek recorded consecutive kills to close out the set and the match.

Murray led the Bishops with 13 kills, while Solberg finished with 9.  Kutilek added 8 kills and a team-high 6 blocks, freshman setter Olivia Osuna (Orlando, Fla./Phillips) distributed 23 assists, and sophomore defensive specialist Neah White (Indianapolis, Ind./North Central) recorded 14 digs.

Box Score