MARIETTA, Ohio — The Marietta College volleyball team opened the season with a thrilling 3-2 win over visiting Ohio Christian University Tuesday (Sept. 1) evening in Ban Johnson Arena. The Pioneers posted set scores of 25-16, 14-25, 25-15, 19-25 and 15-11.
Marietta scored the first six points of the first set and then finished it off by scoring eight of the last 10 points. The Pioneer attack went cold in the second set as the Trailblazers evened the match at a set apiece.
The Pioneers responded with their best offensive set of the match in the third. Marietta posted 14 kills and a .324 attack percentage to take the set 25-15. After taking an early 7-2 lead in the fourth set, it appeared that MC would close out the victory.
Ohio Christian slowly climbed back into the set and trailed by one, 14-13, when Marietta called its first timeout. After trading points, OCU notched six straight points to lead 20-16. The Trailblazers would hold on for the 25-19 win to force the fifth set.
In the deciding set, the Pioneers never trailed. Marietta jumped out to a 3-0 lead. Ohio Christian forced ties at seven, 10 and 11 before Marietta secured the win with the final four points.
Freshman
Amanda Arrowood (Reynoldsburg/Groveport Madison) led all players with 13 kills and a .364 attack percentage.
Devin Walter (Indianapolis, Ind./Southport) finished with 12 kills, while
Mallory Vodopich (Canton/Massillon Perry) had 10 and
Erica Denallo (Independence/Independence) had nine.
Julia Moskaluk (Copley/Revere) dished out 44 assists and had 15 digs. Libero
Mary Ervin (Lewis Center/Olentangy Orange) notched a match-high 16 digs.
Marietta hosts the annual River City Tournament this weekend. The Pioneers open the tournament against Thiel College on Friday (Sept. 4) at 7:30 p.m. Fans can follow all the Pioneer teams all year long at
pioneers.marietta.edu. You can also follow the Pioneers on Facebook at
facebook.com/MariettaCollege and @MariettaPioneer on Twitter and Instagram.
