OSHKOSH, Wis. – Playing in the Sweet 16 for the first time since they reached the national championship match in 2016, the No. 21 WashU women's volleyball team dropped a 3-0 match to regional host UW-Oshkosh on Saturday evening to conclude their 2025 season.
The Bears finish the season with a 24-9 record.
The first set against the Titans saw UWO slowly build up a five-point lead at 13-8. Single points, a 2-0 stretch, and a 3-0 run by the hosts saw their lead extend to eight at 20-12. Trailing 23-14, WashU would cut the lead down to five with a 4-0 run with a kill by first-year
Nia Jones, a service ace from junior
Ellie Laird, a block from senior
Eva Boling, and a kill by first-year
Abby Krause. However, the Titans answered with a pair of points to take the first set 25-18.
After UWO took a 4-1 lead to start the second set, the Bears went on a 6-1 run to jump ahead by two at 7-5. Quickly chipping away and regaining the lead, the Titans took a 16-11 lead midway through the set. Several small runs by UWO saw them gather a set point at 24-14. Once again, WashU answered with a run of its own with three straight points, all kills by senior
Anna Freeman, before the Titans closed out the set 25-17.
UWO quickly took control of the third set, 7-2, before the Bears used a 6-1 run to tie the score up at 8-8. The Titans retook the lead and pushed up to four at 13-9 before another run by WashU saw the score tied again at 14-14. After building their lead to three at 18-15, the Titans saw it shrink to just one before pushing back to three at 23-20. UWO got a pair of kills to close out the match 3-0 with a 25-20 set three win.
Junior
Leah Oyewole had the team-high 11 kills while Laird led the team in digs with 24. Krause and first-year
Avery Reed also reached double-digit digs with 11 and 10, respectively.
Senior
Sam Buckley finished the match with 28 assists. The program's all-time assist leader finishes her season with 1,323 and will close out her career with 5,368 total assists.
For their strong performance in their three regional matches, both Buckley and Laird were named to the region's All-Tournament team.
WashU will now turn to the offseason to build another strong contender for not only a UAA title but a national championship.
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Elevating scholar-champions requires resources beyond the institutional budget. Through the W Club, generous alumni, parents, and friends provide unrestricted support that is essential to the extraordinary WashU student-athlete experience—and the ongoing growth and development of the department. Annual support for Athletics allows the Bears to consistently rise to national levels of competition and ensures that our student-athletes enjoy exceptional opportunities as they train, compete, and lead. To make a gift to the Annual Fund for Athletics, please visit our secure online giving form or contact the Athletics Advancement Office at athletics@wustl.edu.
