MARIETTA, Ohio — Marietta College opens play in the Ohio Athletic Conference Volleyball Tournament at Heidelberg University on Tuesday (Nov. 3) at 7:00 p.m. The Pioneers, seeded eighth, enter the postseason with a 9-19 overall record, while the top-seeded Student Princes are 23-6 on the season.
Fans can access live stats and live video for the match
HERE.
Marietta (2-7 OAC) is making its fifth straight appearance in the OAC Tournament and 19th overall. The Pioneers were runners-up in 1985 and 1987. Heidelberg (9-0 OAC) won the league tournament in 2010 and the Student Princes are making their 24th appearance in the tournament.
Heidelberg defeated the Pioneers in Tiffin during the regular season, 3-0. The set scores were 25-19, 25-15 and 25-12. The Marietta Heidelberg winner plays the winner of No. 4 Muskingum (6-3) vs. No. 5 John Carroll (5-4).
Tuesday's other first round matches include No. 6 Otterbein (4-5) at No. 3 Baldwin Wallace (6-3) and No. 7 Mount Union (4-5) at No. 2 Ohio Northern (8-1). The two winners will meet each other on Thursday for a semifinal match. The highest remaining seed will host the championship on Saturday.
Junior middle hitter Sarah Parker leads the Heidelberg attack. She currently ranks first in the OAC in kills with .392, kills per set with 3.84 and attack percentage with a .334 percentage.
Senior outside hitter Jamie Kluding provides a strong second option for setter Karlie Diruzza. Kluding has recorded 289 kills this season good for 3.21 per set. Diruzza directs the Student Prince attack and leads the OAC with 1107 assists.
Leading the way for Marietta are seniors
Shauntiel Oliver-Smith (Elyria, Ohio/Elyria) and
Devin Walter (Indianapolis, Ind./Southport). Oliver-Smith has 141 kills and a team-best .147 attack percentage. Walter leads the Pioneers with 231 kills and has a .135 attack percentage.
Junior setter/right side hitter
Mallory Vodopich (Canton, Ohio/Massillon Perry) has split time between hitter and setter. She has recorded 166 kills and 289 assists. Junior
Julia Moskaluk (Copley, Ohio/Revere) has 479 assists; good for 5.64 per set.
Tickets are $7 for adults, $5 for senior citizens (62 years and older) and $2 for non-OAC students. OAC students with a valid school ID are admitted free of charge.
Fans can follow the Pioneers all season long at
pioneers.marietta.edu. You can also follow the Pioneers on Facebook at
facebook.com/MariettaCollege and @MariettaPioneer on Twitter and Instagram.
