Box Score 1 | Box Score 2
Ohio Wesleyan 3, Bethany 1
Ohio Wesleyan 3, Franklin 0

Freshman outside hitter Natalie Dieball (Cincinnati/Lakota East) turned in a pair of double-digit performances in kills on the way to winning tournament Most Valuable Player honors as Ohio Wesleyan swept Bethany and Franklin to take the tournament team title on Saturday at Branch Rickey Arena.

Ohio Wesleyan opened the day with a come-from-behind, 20-25, 25-16, 25-19, 25-16 win over Bethany, then swept Franklin by scores of 25-12, 25-16, 25-17.

With the score tied at 10 in the first set, Bethany got a kill from Destiny Goodnight and a block and a kill from Emma Marthins, and the Bison held off charges that brought the Bishops within a single point on 3 different occasions.  Ohio Wesleyan trailed, 11-10, in the second set before reeling off 8 straight points that included a pair of aces from Dieball and a kill and a block from senior middle blocker Claire Solberg (Huron).  Dieball had another 2 aces during an early 4-0 run in the third set that gave the Bishops some breathing room, and Ohio Wesleyan pulled away for a 2-1 lead in the match.  Senior right-side hitter Melissa Murray (Chardon/Notre Dame-Cathedral Latin) had a pair of kills to help Ohio Wesleyan open the fourth set with a 6-2 run, and added another kill, along with 2 kills from sophomore middle blocker Reagan Brake (McPherson, Kan./Inman), during a later 5-0 burst that helped the Bishops seal the set and the match.

Dieball led Ohio Wesleyan with 11 kills, and junior right-side hitter Grace Cummings (Columbus/Worthington Kilbourne) added 9.  Junior setter Olivia Osuna (Orlando, Fla./Phillips) finished with 20 assists and sophomore setter Lily Bechina (Chicago, Ill./Jones Prep) contributed 13 more.  Brake had a team-high 5 blocks and senior outside hitter Kaitlyn Peters (Fort Wayne, Ind./Homestead) led the team with 17 digs.

Ohio Wesleyan built an early 9-3 lead in the first set against Franklin, with Dieball chipping in 3 kills and Murray 2, and pulled away for the win.  The Bishops led, 9-7, in the second set when a 9-3 run that featured a pair of kills from Brake opened up an 18-10 Ohio Wesleyan lead.  The third set saw the Bishops again take a 9-3 lead, this time with freshman outside hitter Jada Colvin (Cleveland/Mayfield) turning in 3 kills and an ace and Solberg adding 2 kills.  Ohio Wesleyan extended the margin to 19-8 after back-to-back kills by Solberg, and the Bishops still led, 24-13, before a late Grizzly rally.

Dieball had a team-high 10 klls, while Solberg, Murray, and Colvin finished with 7 apiece.  Osuna led the Bishops with 20 assists and Bechina dished out 17.  Senior defensive specialist Neah White (Indianapolis, Ind./North Central) had a team-high 17 digs.

Dieball was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player.  She was joined on the all-tournament team by White, Riley Felton and Destiny Goodnight of Bethany, Jayda Branch of Spalding, Hope Moring of Franklin, and Grace Porter of Heidelberg.

Box Score - Bethany
Box Score - Franklin