Region 3 Division I Teams to See

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Here are the top teams to follow in Region 3 district playoff action:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Olentangy Liberty - #1 Seed</em></strong><br>The Ohio Capital-Central champs are 18-4 overall and are looking to return to the state finals after falling just short in the 2021 title match. They have good offensive balance led by the 258 kills from [player_tooltip player_id='141717' first='Claire' last='Mrukowski'] and one of the best floor distributors in senior [player_tooltip player_id='141692' first='Gabi' last='Moulton']. [player_tooltip player_id='169507' first='Abbey' last='Queen'] contributes 21 digs per match.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Bishop Watterson - #2 Seed</em></strong><br>Senior middle <strong>Riley McGee </strong>leads the Eagles in hitting percentage at .375 as she is one of four key arms in this offense. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='169491' first='Clara' last='Vondran']</strong> is a 5'11 senior that offers big offense and defense with 2.9 kills per set and 10.3 digs per match. Bishop Watterson is ranked #8 in the most recent Division I state poll.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Oletangy Orange - #3 Seed</em></strong><br>Ohio's #15 ranked Division I team finished 2nd in the Ohio Capital-Central standings and are led by junior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='139282' first='Lily' last='Barron'] </strong>and her 4.1 kills per set. Junior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='197061' first='Madison' last='Cugino']</strong> provides good offensive support at 2.8 kills per set while <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='227636' first='Emma' last='Cugino']</strong> picks up nearly 20 digs per match. The Pioneers will face West on Wednesday.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Oletangy - #4 Seed</em></strong><br>Oletlangy finished 9-1 in league play and tied atop the Ohio Capital-Central conference. At 17-4 overall, they have great offensive balance as sophomore <strong>Finley Sparks</strong> leads the Braves with 2.7 kills per set. Also over two kills per set are juniors <strong>Sophia Weithman</strong> (2.6 kps) and<strong> Molly Hartzell </strong>(2.3 kps). Senior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='141715' first='Emma' last='Bebo']</strong> dishes nearly 10 assists per set. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Big Walnut - #5 Seed</em></strong><br>The Golden Eagles are having a terrific season as they are 20-2 overall and are co-champs of the Ohio Capital-Capital conference. Senior <strong>McKenzie Krous</strong> is the offensive leader at 3.6 kills per set as junior teammate <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='151968' first='Teagan' last='Ng']</strong> contributes similar numbers at 3.4 kills per frame and also leads this team in efficiency at .352 and digs at nine per match.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Dublin Coffman - #6 Seed</em></strong><br>Senior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='114523' first='Ella' last='Durham']</strong> (*pictured) is one of the state's biggest point scorers at 6.0 kills per set. The 6'3 senior and San Diego commit is averaging career high numbers and has nearly 1,500 career kills. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='139284' first='Grace' last='Thomas']</strong> provides solid support from the middle with 3.6 kills per set for the #19 ranked Shamrocks. They won their first match on Tuesday 3-0 and next face Groveport-Madison on Thursday.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Dublin Scioto - #7 Seed</em></strong><br>The Irish claimed a share of the Ohio Capital-Capital conference and are led by one of the nation's top 2024 prospects in high flying <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='139280' first='Alec' last='Rothe']</strong>. She has terminated over 300 kills this season and will soon surpass 1,000 career kills. Rothe also has over 200 career blocks. Sophomore setter<strong> [player_tooltip player_id='176091' first='Maddie' last='Zechman']</strong> has earned 645 assists on the season. The Irish earned their first win on Tuesday and next play on Thursday versus Marion Harding.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Dublin Jerome - #8 Seed</em></strong><br>At 20-2 overall, the Celtics take on Logan on Wednesday. Senior pin <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='141702' first='Surabhi' last='Srinivasan']</strong> leads the offense with 4.0 kills per set as she has over 750 kills for her three-year varsity career. She is also a team leader at nearly 10 digs per match. Junior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='196346' first='Taylor' last='Bahnub']</strong> is a 6'1 middle that contributes 3.2 kills per set and a team leading 2.1 blocks per match. With 138 kills on the season and a 2.2 kills per set average, freshman <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='227807' first='Mackenzie' last='Palumbo']</strong> is the third option of this team's big offense as they average 12.7 kills per set collectively.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->