Ohio Dominican Volleyball Begins NCAA Tournament Run Thursday
The Ohio Dominican Volleyball team is one day away from doing something it has never accomplished, competing in the NCAA Division II Women’s Volleyball tournament. The Panthers have made the journey to St. Louis, Missouri, to compete in the Midwest Regional Quarterfinal, beginning play against No.7 Rockhurst Thursday afternoon.
ODU makes its journey to the “Gateway of the West” thanks to its historic record of 26-5 (ODU’s best since joining Division II) and an automatic qualification following a 3-2 victory over Cedarville University in the 2025 Great Midwest Athletic Conference Championship match.
The Panthers come into Thursday’s contest riding a 10-match winning streak, including a victory over fellow G-MAC squad and No.5 seed Findlay. ODU hasn’t tasted defeat since an October 22nd defeat against Cedarville.
The Black & Gold will look to senior Grace Zinchuk to continue her strong play in the postseason. The 6-2 senior middle blocker was named G-MAC Tournament MVP with 29 kills, a .400 hitting percentage, and 10 blocks. In the final against Cedarville, Zinchuk hit .394 with 13 kills as the third-highest attack percentage for the tournament. Five of her blocks came in the semifinal against Findlay.
ODU hopes three more members of its senior class continue their strong contributions Thursday as its tournament run gets underway. Ashley Aselage, Jenna Peters, and Saige Avery will play a role in how the Panthers’ postseason tournament progresses.
During the G-MAC tournament, Aselage totaled 37 kills, a .317 attacking percentage, and six blocks. She ranked third in the tournament in kills and notched back-to-back matches of 15 kills between the semis and final. Aselage combined with Zinchuk to have ten total blocks in the clash with the Oilers.
Avery led the Panthers with 88 assists, was second on the team in aces with five, and collected seven blocks. She was third on the team with 37 digs for the week. The senior was second in the tournament standings in assists.
Peters was the team leader with 42 kills while adding 29 digs and seven blocks. She had the second most kills for the tournament and gave the Panthers 19 kills in the championship match.
ODU takes the court in St.Louis on Thursday with the first serve scheduled for 2:30 PM EST. You can click here to watch.