CWRU Splits Two Five-Set Matches at Denison

CWRU Splits Two Five-Set Matches at Denison

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The Case Western Reserve University volleyball team split a pair of five-set matches on Saturday afternoon at Livingston Gymnasium in Granville, Ohio. CWRU defeated Ohio Wesleyan University in five sets (22-25, 25-19, 16-25, 25-15, 19-17) before falling to Denison University in five sets (23-25, 21-25, 25-21, 25-13, 15-10).

The Spartans moved to 9-8 with the split with the Battling Bishops dropping to 9-6 and the Big Red improving to 5-12.

Stats and Standouts

  • First-year Maya Zarow had 37 kills across the two matches, including a season-high 20 in the loss to Denison
  • Juniors Sienna Olson and Madeline Halter added 18 kills in 10 sets and sophomore Isabel Haytayan and senior Emily Goodpaster contributed 15 kills each
  • Senior Avery Basinger had a team-high 56 assists in 10 sets with first-year Piper Starling adding 37
  • Junior Sophia Datto dug out 15 attacks in each match with Goodpaster adding 21 and Starling contributing 18
  • Starling added a season-high five services aces against OWU, finishing the day with eight

CWRU 3, Ohio Wesleyan 2 (22-25, 25-19, 16-25, 25-15, 19-17)

First Set (22-25)

  • CWRU used a 4-0 run to take a 10-8 lead early in the first set on a kill by first-year Ava Felgar
  • The Battling Bishops responded by winning six of the next seven points to claim at 14-11 advantage
  • A kill by junior Madeline Halter ended the run, but OWU won the next three points to take a five-point edge
  • OWU led by six, 21-15, before a kill by Halter, service ace by Goodpaster, and kills by Felgar, Basinger, and Zarow, brought the team within one, 21-20
  • A Zarow kill kept the deficit at one, 22-21, before OWU won three of the final four points to secure the first set

Second Set (25-19)

  • Back-to-back Ohio Wesleyan attacking errors gave CWRU a 14-11 advantage in the second period
  • After a service error, CWRU won four of the next five points to take a 19-13 lead on a kill by Olson
  • OWU cut the deficit to four, 20-16, on a kill and a Spartan service error made the score 21-17 late in the set
  • After the teams split the next four points, Zarow finished the set with two kills in a row to even the match score at one

Third Set (16-25)

  • OWU led by six, 10-4, early in the pivotal third set
  • CWRU cut the deficit to three, 12-9, on a service ace by Goodpaster, and again at 14-11 on a block by Haytayan and Halter
  • After an OWU kill, CWRU tied the score at 15 with four points in a row, including kills by Haytayan and Olson
  • Ohio Wesleyan responded by winning the next three points, and, after a Haytayan kill, claimed the final seven rallies to take a 2-1 lead in the match

Fourth Set (25-15)

  • Down 3-2 early in the fourth set, the Spartans won six points in a row to take a five-point lead, including back-to-back service aces by Starling
  • After a kill by OWU, CWRU won four of the next five points to claim a seven-point edge
  • Ohio Wesleyan cut the deficit to five, 18-13, before the Spartans ended the set on a 7-2 run to force a decisive fifth set
  • Basinger ended the stanza with a service ace

Fifth Set (19-17)

  • The teams battled early in the final set, with OWU taking two-point lead before a block by Haytayan and Olson tied the score at four
  • After splitting the next 10 points, a kill by Zarow gave the Spartans their first lead of the stanza, 10-9
  • Two consecutive service errors kept the CWRU lead at one, before an Ohio Wesleyan attacking error gave the Spartans a 12-10 advantage
  • Back-to-back Battling Bishop kills tied the score at 12, before the service ace gave OWU a 13-12 lead
  • After a timeout, the Spartans forced an attacking error, evening the score at 13
  • A kill by Olson gave CWRU the serve for match point, prompting an Ohio Wesleyan timeout
  • A block and an attacking error put the Battling Bishops ahead by two, 15-14, and gave OWU the chance to serve for the match
  • After a timeout, a kill by Goodpaster and Ohio Wesleyan attacking error gave Case Western Reserve the one-point advantage
  • The Battling Bishops responded with a kill and an attacking error to serve for the match at 17-16
  • Halter kept the Spartans in the match with a kill and Zarow gave CWRU an 18-17 lead with a kill of her own
  • Goodpaster finished the set and match with an ace, the 11th of the day for the Spartans, to secure the victory

CWRU 2, Denison 3 (23-25, 21-25, 25-21, 25-13, 10-15)

First Set (23-25)

  • The Spartans opened the match with a 7-2 run
  • Denison cut the deficit to two, 11-9, before the kill by Zarow increased the edge to three
  • The Big Red won the next four points to take their first lead of the stanza, 13-12
  • CWRU responded with three consecutive points, including back-to-back kills by Zarow to reclaim the edge
  • After Denison tied the score at 15, the teams split the next four points
  • The hosts grabbed a two-point lead before a kill by Olson and block by Goodpaster and Felgar tied the score at 19
  • Two consecutive Big Red kills gave the hosts a two-point edge, before a Goodpaster kill and Denison attacking error tied the score at 21
  • The teams traded the next four points before a kill and service ace secured the first set for Denison

Second Set (21-25)

  • On the strength of a 5-1 run, Denison took a 9-6 lead early in the second set
  • CWRU tied the score at 9, 10, 11, and 12, before the hosts won four of the next six points to gain an 18-13 edge
  • The Spartans used a 3-0 run to cut the deficit to just two, 22-20 on back-to-back Denison attacking errors
  • The Big Red responded by winning two of the next three points and closed the set with a kill

Third Set (25-21)

  • Looking to win the match, Denison won 10 of the first 14 points in the third period
  • CWRU responded by winning the six points, tying the score at 10 on a kill by sophomore Kate Williams
  • After a timeout, the Big Red won the next three points
  • However, the Spartans tied the score at 13 and took the lead on a kill by Zarow
  • Senior Sude Naz Item had two aces over the next three points with Basinger adding a kill to put the visitors ahead 17-13
  • The hosts came back to tie the score at 19, 20, and 21
  • Kills by Olson and Goodpaster gave the Spartans a two-point edge, and two Denison attacking errors sent the match to a fourth set

Fourth Set (25-13)

  • A kill by Haytayan in the stanza started a 10-2 run for CWRU, fiving the visitors an early 13-6 lead in the set
  • After a service error, Case Western Reserve increased its lead to nine, 19-10, on a service ace by Starling
  • The teams split the next five points before the Spartans ended the stanza with a 4-0 run to force a decisive fifth set on a kill by Halter

Fifth Set (10-15)

  • With the score tied at four, Denison won five points in a row to take a 9-4 edge
  • The Spartans battled back, winning five of the next seven rallies to cut the deficit to two, 11-9
  • Three kills in a row gave Denison the chance to serve for the match
  • Zarow prevented the end of the match with a kill, but the hosts won the set on the next point, 15-10

Spartan Notes

  • The Spartans improved to 20-26 against OWU since 1983, winning the last four meetings and five of the last six matchups between the schools
  • CWRU fell to 18-21 against Denison since 1983, losing for the first time in the last six meetings and just the second in the last 10
  • The five-set matches were just the second and third of the season for the Spartans. CWRU is 2-1 in contests that go the full five sets in 2026
  • Zarow's 20 kills against Denison are the most by a Spartan this season and the most by a Case Western Reserve player since Kalli Wall had 23 against John Carroll on October 15, 2025