The DePauw Tigers spent their weekend in Kenosha, WI where they made their fifth appearance in the NCAA Division III Tournament. The Tigers didn’t come home with the national title, but they accomplished a great deal as they won their match against the University of Chicago Maroons in the opening round 3-0 (25-19, 25-19, 25-18). It was the first win they got to take home in their last five visits to the tournament.
Going into the weekend’s excitement, the teams’ focus was to make it past the first round with the support of one another. On and off the court the women are friends, which is what makes them stand out, junior Brekiesha Wezley said.
“[We played with] no regrets and played for each other,” Weszley said.
The opening match was a battle for the Tigers, but they were confident going in sophomore Elisabeth Wilson said. Starting off slow the Tigers bounced back wining the final six points with sophomore Rachael Lendermen serving an ace to lock down the win.
“We were loud and working together,” Wilson said.
In the final two sets DePauw led and didn’t let the University of Chicago take anything. With a 6-1 lead in the second to an 11-point lead in the third DePauw dominated.
Junior Lauren Falotico led the Tigers with 10 kills, while Wilson and junior Sarah Burtensaw each had seven. First-year Emily Beckes led the team in aces with a total of five. Junior Keely McGrath and Lenderman each had 15 digs to round out the opening game.
After the team’s fresh start over the Maroons it was time for them to face 14th-ranked Carthage College in order to advance to the regional final. The Tigers were sent home after losing to the Carthage Lady Reds 3-0 (25-23, 25, 19, 25 – 20).
Despite the loss the team had reason to celebrate on the bus ride back.
“Our goal was to make it past the first round and see how far we could go as a team,” Weszley said. “We are proud of our success but know as team we can continue to push each other and make it further in the tournament next year.”
The Tigers started out strong leading the Lady Reds 14-8, but Carthage came back, scoring the next five points and 12 out of the next 13. Down 20-15 the Tigers fought back hard and just missed the win shy of two points, 25-23.
The second set Carthage led the Tigers the entire time, but in the third set DePauw started out strong, ending in ties up until both teams were at 13-13. From there, the Lady Reds scored seven consecutive. At 23-14 the Tigers found their strength gaining five straight points, but Carthage’s Bria Hailey ended the Tiger’s run closing the set at 25-20.
The Tigers may have not come home as champions but they met their own goals and reached success at the end of the 2014 season. DePauw closed its season at 27-11 overall.
“The highlight of the season was making the NCAA tournament,” Wilson said. “It was an opportunity that not every team will get an for is to accomplish what we did was the biggest highlight.”
