Top-seeded Southeast Missouri women's volleyball (26-7) secured the 2021 Ohio Valley Conference Tournament Championship in a five-set thriller (25-22, 25-23, 19-25, 15-25, 15-13) over #2 seed Morehead State (20-12) last Saturday at Houck Field House.
After 3-0 sweeping Morehead State in both 2021 regular-season matchups, SEMO outlasted the Eagles in five sets in the battle of the 2021 OVC Regular-Season Co-Champions Saturday.
With the victory, the Redhawks won their second OVC Tournament Championship in three seasons and seventh in program history. SEMO now has 17 total OVC Volleyball championship titles, the most of any program in the history of the Ohio Valley Conference.
Laney Malloy, Colby Greene and Claire Ochs were named to the 2021 All-OVC Tournament Team. Ochs was also tabbed the 2021 OVC Tournament MVP.
Malloy, the 2021 OVC Player of the Year, finished with 53 kills and 36 digs for her second career All-Tournament honors. Greene added 37 kills on a .354 hitting percentage for her first career postseason tournament laurels.
Ochs, the 2021 OVC Setter of the Year, was named to her third career OVC All-Tournament team and second MVP honor in three seasons. She concluded the tourney with 128 assists and 47 digs as SEMO hit a .244 over the three days.
With the tournament crown, SEMO has secured the OVC's automatic bid to the NCAA Division I Women’s Volleyball Championship tournament as part of the 64-team field.
The NCAA Division I Volleyball tournament bracket will be announced the Sunday at 7:30 p.m. on ESPNU. A watch party will be hosted at Dogwood Social House in Cape Girardeau and is open to the public.
The first and second rounds are scheduled for Dec. 2-4.
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