In 1967, the volleyball team, under head coach Mary Parker, played its first intercollegiate match. The Bishop volleyball team defeated Ohio Dominican in the first intercollegiate event held in Branch Rickey Arena in 1976.
Cynthia Holliday took over as volleyball coach in 1994 and Ohio Wesleyan won its first North Coast Athletic Conference championship in the sport, defeating Allegheny in a five-game thriller in the finals of the league tournament. Ohio Wesleyan has won two NCAC championships in volleyball. The Battling Bishops defeated Wittenberg in the title match in 1996, winning three games by a score of 16-14
The volleyball team swept John Carroll in three games in 2006, and the win not only was the 200th at Ohio Wesleyan for head coach Cynthia Holliday, but it made her the Bishops’ winningest volleyball coach, passing Mary Parker. Krista Cobb was named the new head volleyball coach in 2014.
The Battling Bishop volleyball teams play their home games in Branch Rickey Arena, nestled in the middle of the Ohio Wesleyan campus. The arena was named after Branch Rickey ’04, who integrated major league baseball while president and general manager of the Brooklyn Dodgers. Branch Rickey Arena seats 1450. Rickey Arena is part of the Rickey Center, which also includes the adjacent Gordon Field House.
