Sports
Bobcats face off against Raiders in Championship Match
By: Meg Kuczinski
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ATHENS, Ohio (WOUB)- The Ohio University Women’s Volleyball Team fell to the Wright State Raiders in a three-set in the Bobcat Invitational Championship game.
The Bobcats were coming off a five-set win against the Appalachian State Mountaineers, where star player Anna Kharchynska had 19 kills for the Bobcats with six kills in the final set alone. However, this game was for the Championship match-up and would prove to be the most difficult game the Bobcats had faced so far.
Early in the first set, Ohio kept it close with Wright State. Lauren Yacobucci had the kill for the Raiders with an assist from Katie Sowko. However, the Bobcats went toe-to-toe with their opponents, with Anna Kharchynska taking the kill with a little help from Chariti McKeller.
Later in the first set, the Raiders had three kills in a row, helping them to pull ahead of the Bobcats. Lauren Yaccobucci and Mya Ayro were key players during this set, helping Wright State to win the first period 25-16.
Ohio was able to keep up with Wright State at the start of the set, but the Raiders quickly pulled ahead. A key service ace from Taylor Bransfield contributed to Wright State’s success on the court, giving them an 8-5 lead. After a brief timeout, the Bobcats seemed to find brief success until Elena Dubuc delivered a serve ace to break Ohio’s stride. The second set ended 25-16 in Wright State’s favor.
The Bobcats had a slow start to the third set, allowing for Jenny Wessling to deliver a serve ace. Ohio fell just behind the Raiders once again but seemed to find their groove after a kill by Elizabeth Hoerlein to set the score at 22-15. Anna Kharchynska contributed to their newfound success with two serve aces to give the Bobcats momentum. Soon enough, the set was tied 26-26 with the Bobcats hoping to continue the match-up. However, after two aggressive kills by Sam Ott, the Raiders took home the win for the Championship match-up with a final score of 28-26.
The Bobcats will be back to play in the High-Point Tournament in North Carolina on September 6.