ONU WRAPS CONFERENCE SCHEDULE WITH FIVE-SET WIN OVER SXU

BOURBONNAIS, Ill. – In the CCAC regular-season finale, Kaylee Cozen and Molly Kurtz each put down multiple kills in the fifth set to help the Olivet Nazarene University women's volleyball team outlast Saint Xavier 25-19, 18-25, 23-25, 25-14, 15-11 Thursday night inside McHie Arena.

The duo was responsible for 11 of ONU's 15 points in the decisive fifth set. Kurtz put away four kills while Cozen secured five kills and a pair of blocks to lead the Tigers to victory.

The Tigers opened the set on a four-point run, with Kurtz and Cozen each putting away a kill to take a lead they would hold on to for the remainder of the match. Leading 13-11, Cozen and Kurtz put down back-to-back kills to seal the win.

The victory puts ONU at 11-13 overall and 8-6 in the CCAC to close out the conference slate.

Despite stretches of dominance, ONU was extended to five sets after slipping up in the second and third sets. In the third set, the Tigers squandered a 23-21 lead after allowing the Cougars to steal the set with a 4-0 run.

The Tigers regrouped in the fourth. Trailing 11-10 midway through, ONU closed out the set on a 15-3 run. Kurtz, Halle Nicholas, and Anna Taylor all had multiple kills in the spurt that secured the double-digit set victory.

Nicholas led all players with 22 kills. Cozen finished with 16 and Kurtz added eight. Those three Tigers combined for just 10 hitting errors to go along with their 36 combined kills.

Hadleigh Loitz recorded a match-high 48 assists while racking up 10 digs. She was one of three Tigers to record double-digit digs, with Karsyn Delbridge picking up 10 and Sara Serafimova registering a team-leading 24.

The Tigers will close out the regular season with a non-conference tilt at the University of Chicago on Saturday at 2 p.m.

--ONU—

*Contact: Evan Wild, Sports Information Director, ewwild@olivet.edu