COLUMBUS, Ohio – Senior libero #
Jen Braun (Chagrin Falls/Kenston)# became Marietta College's career leader in digs Tuesday (Oct. 16) evening as the Pioneers defeated Capital University 3-2 in Ohio Athletic Conference volleyball action. Marietta (14-9, 3-3 OAC) posted set scores of 23-25, 25-15, 23-25, 25-15 and 16-14.
Braun had 40 digs in the match giving her 1,844 in her career. She surpassed #Becca Holzworth# who had 1,810 digs from 2006-09.
The Crusaders (10-18, 2-4 OAC) won close hard-fought battles in the first and third sets. Capital led by as many as nine points in the opening set, 18-9. Marietta went on a 14-3 run to take a 23-21 lead only to see Capital win the final four points of the set.
Marietta turned the tables in the second set never trailing after a 7-7 tie. A Pioneer service error allowed Capital to get within three points of Marietta, 18-15. But Marietta responded with seven consecutive points, including three kills from freshman #
Keri Horton (Westland, Mich./Wayne Memorial)#, to win the set 25-15.
The third set was eerily similar to the first with Capital taking the early lead only to have the Pioneers battle back. An attack error by the Crusaders gave Marietta a 23-22 lead and forced Capital to take a timeout. After the break, the Crusaders won three straight points to steal the set, 25-23.
Any momentum the Crusaders had after the third set was quickly wiped out when the Pioneers won the first six points in the fourth. Marietta led by as many as 11 points in the set and easily forced the fifth and deciding set.
The fifth set was a thriller with neither team able to build a leader larger than three points. The set was tied several times including at 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14 points apiece. Kills from junior #
Paige DeVriendt (Bowling Green/Bowling Green)# and sophomore #
Rachel Hackenberg (Canal Winchester/Franklin Heights)# gave the Pioneers the victory.
DeVriendt was nearly flawless for Marietta on the night with 14 kills and only one error for a .520 attack percentage. Hackenberg recorded 10 kills and five blocks.
Senior #
Alex VanGundy (Powell/Olentangy Liberty)# had a match-high 20 kills. Freshman #
Chloe Janson (Lawrenceburg, Ind./East Central)# had 17 kills and three blocks.
Sophomore #
Laura Mauer (Terre Haute, Ind./North)# directed the Pioneer attack and notched 55 assists and had a team-high six blocks to go along with 17 digs. Classmate #Brittany Merritt# added 24 digs and junior #
Amber Wiley (Brunswick/Brookside)# had 14 digs.
Marietta travels to Wilmington College on Saturday (Oct. 20) for a 7:30 p.m. match. Fans can catch the action live at
pioneers.marietta.edu. You can also follow the Pioneers on Facebook at
facebook.com/MariettaCollege and @MariettaPioneer on Twitter.
