ENID, Okla. – Freshman Melaina Haines hammered 20 kills and senior setter Olivia Wiedower posted a double-double with 46 assists and 24 digs as the Harding volleyball team rallied from an opening-set loss to defeat Ouachita Baptist 3-1 (21-25, 25-23, 25-12, 25-22) in the Great American Conference Tournament semifinals Thursday at Stride Bank Center.
With the victory, the Lady Bisons advance to the GAC Tournament championship match for the eighth time in program history. Harding will play for the tournament title Friday at 3 p.m. in Enid, Oklahoma against the winner between Oklahoma Baptist and Southwestern Oklahoma.
Harding leaned on relentless floor defense to out-dig the Tigers 111-94 and hold Ouachita Baptist to a .141 hitting percentage. Sophomore libero Mallory Weyand anchored the back row with a career-high 38 digs, breaking Harding's GAC Tournament single-match record of 34 set by Taylor Lake against Henderson State on Nov. 10, 2018.
Key Performers
- Melaina Haines (Fr., OH): Led all players with 20 kills on .292 hitting, adding three block assists for a match-high 22.0 points.
- Olivia Wiedower (Sr., S): Directed the offense with 46 assists while adding 24 digs, two blocks and a career-high eight kills on 11 errorless swings (.727).
- Mallory Weyand (So., L): Set the tournament single-match dig record with 38 digs and added seven assists while committing zero reception errors on 32 attempts.
- Ella Drake (Sr., OH) & Josie Bishop (Jr., OH): Provided steady offense on the pins with 13 and 12 kills, respectively. Bishop matched her career high with 49 attack attempts.
- Philomina Klotz (Jr., MB): Controlled the net with nine kills (.240) and five total blocks (two solo, three assisted).
Match Recap
Ouachita Baptist capitalized on strong first-set efficiency (.250) to take the opener 25-21, pulling away late behind Leah Gardner, who finished the match with 17 kills.
The second set proved to be the turning point, featuring 12 ties and eight lead changes. Trailing 23-22 late in the frame, Harding rattled off three consecutive points—getting a kill from Wiedower, a kill from Haines and a set-clinching strike from junior middle blocker Lauren Demuth—to even the match at 25-23.
Momentum swung entirely to the Lady Bisons in the third set. Harding hit a blistering .348 with 19 kills against just three errors, jumping out to a 10-2 lead and cruising to a 25-12 win.
In the fourth set, Harding built a 20-11 cushion before Ouachita Baptist mounted a late surge, cutting the deficit to 23-21. However, Haines delivered a clutch kill to reach match point, and a Tigers service error sealed the 25-22 victory.
Sophie Henry added 11 kills and seven blocks for Ouachita Baptist, while Mack Bidwell recorded 36 assists and 17 digs.
Records and Milestones
- Tournament & Program Dig Marks: In addition to setting the GAC Tournament single-match record, Weyand's 38 digs tie for the fifth-most in a four-set match in program history. Harding's 111 team digs rank as the second-most in a GAC Tournament match (trailing only the 116 against Henderson State in 2018) and tie for the ninth-most in any four-set match in school history.
- Career Milestones: Wiedower pushed her career assists total to 4,113, further cementing her hold on second place on Harding's all-time career list (trailing only Leah Tepe's 6,157). She also surpassed 1,100 career digs (1,116).
- Series History: The win improves Harding's all-time series lead against Ouachita Baptist to 76-30, including a 5-2 mark in GAC Tournament play.
