By: Athletic Communications Student Assistant Joe Meyer '24

BEREA, Ohio - The Baldwin Wallace University women's volleyball team defeated Wilmington College in the 2022 Annual Volley for the Cure Match and Ohio Athletic Conference matchup in Ursprung Gymnasium inside the Lou Higgins Center. The Yellow Jackets (10-8, 1-2 OAC) finished off the Quakers (8-13, 1-2 OAC) in straight sets, by set scores of 25-10, 25-15, and 25-17.

SUMMARY

BW jumped out to an early lead in the first set and kept the momentum throughout. A kill by senior Academic All-OAC middle hitter Isa Luciano (Willoughby/South) gave BW an early 10-6 lead, forcing a Wilmington timeout. The Yellow Jackets continued their first-set dominance out of the timeout, outsourcing Wilmington 15-4 to close the set (25-10).

After a back-and-forth start to the second set, BW took control when junior setter Olivia Zawadzki (Hilliard/Darby) notched her third ace of the match, giving BW a 14-9 lead. A kill by freshman outside hitter Gabby Schlecht (Naperville, Ill./North) extended the Yellow Jackets' advantage to 19-12, and Schlecht later brought the second set to an end (25-15) with her fourth kill of the set. 

A kill by Luciano gave the Yellow Jackets an early 8-3 lead in the third set. After Wilmington cut the BW edge to one point, freshman middle hitter Maleia Thurber (Temecula, Calif./Chaparral) delivered a thumping kill to put BW up 14-12 and restore momentum that the Yellow Jackets would not relinquish. Freshman outside hitter Ella Rodgers (Painesville/Mentor) recorded her first collegiate kill to set up match point, and Luciano closed out the third set (25-17) and match (3-0) with her seventh kill of the day.

KEY STATS

.643 - Thurber recorded a career-high .643 hitting percentage, tallying 10 kills on 14 attempts
38 - Zawadzki notched 38 assists, to go along with three service aces and seven digs
13 - Schlecht recorded a match-high 13 kills to lead the BW attack
20 - Sophomore all-OAC libero Lauren Gardner (Avon/Saint Joseph Academy) tallied a match-high 20 digs
8 - Sophomore outside hitter Sam Rueda (Aurora, Ill./Metea Valley) added eight kills 

UP NEXT

The Yellow Jackets return to the court on Wednesday, October 12 when they travel to University Heights for an OAC contest against crosstown rival John Carroll University. First serve is set for 7:00 p.m. on Mike Moran Court inside the Tony DeCarlo Varsity Center.