MARIETTA, Ohio – The Marietta College volleyball team fell to Otterbein University in a pair of games on Tuesday (March 16) evening inside Ban Johnson Arena. The Pioneer dropped game one in five sets (25-18, 25-22, 19-25, 17-25, 5-15), and fell in game two in three sets (16-25, 23-25, 22-25)
The first set opened as a back and forth battle, as the game remained deadlocked at 5-5 early in the set. Marietta took an 8-5 edge behind three consecutive points, and forced an Otterbein timeout. The quick run was led by a pair of kills from
Hailey Fuller (Newark, Ohio/Granville). After the Cardinals made the score 9-7, the Pioneers scored six of the next seven points and led, 15-8. During the run
Maggie Fellers (Alliance, Ohio/Marlington) and
Becca Phelps (Mansfield, Ohio/Madison Comprehensive) each had a kill. Marietta continued to play well and held a 17-11 advantage late in the set to force an Otterbein timeout. The Pioneers won the first set, 25-18 when
Sam Ritenour (Jeffersonville, Ohio/Miami Trace) drove home the final kill.
The second set was a hard-fought battle early, but the Cardinals took a 10-8 edge to force a Marietta timeout. Out of the timeout, The Pioneers outscored Otterbein 7-3 to take a 15-13 advantage. The run saw a pair of kills from Phelps and Ritenour, with Fellers notching two aces during the run. The Pioneers closed out the set with a kill from Abby Thompson, and won 25-22.
The Cardinals held a 6-2 lead early in the third set, before Marietta rallied with three straight points, to make the score 6-5. The Pioneer points were highlighted by a kill from
Maris Kaiser (Lewis Center, Ohio/Olentangy). Otterbein responded with four straight points, to lead 9-5, which forced a Marietta timeout. Otterbein stretched out a big lead, but the Pioneers fought for the remainder of the set, before they fell 25-19.
The Cardinals opened the fourth set strong, to grab a 5-1 edge. Marietta answered back with three straight points to make the score 5-4, behind a pair of kills from Phelps. Otterbein answered with seven of the next eight points to lead 12-5. The Cardinals maintained their momentum and won the fourth set, 25-17.
Otterbein carried its momentum over to the fifth and final set to lead 9-2. The Cardinals won the fifth and final set, 15-5.
Otterbein scored the first three points of the second match of the night. The Pioneers answered back with four consecutive points to lead 4-3. The run was sparked by a kill from Ritenour, and a pair of aces from
April Davis (Aurora, Ohio/Aurora). The Cardinals were able to get a four-point lead midway through the first set. The teams exchanged points for the remainder of the set, and Otterbein took set one, 25-16.
Marietta got off to a hot start in the second set, and led 6-1 early. The early points came from blocks from Fellers, Nader, and Phelps. The Pioneers continued to pull away and held a 13-2 edge, behind kills from Fellers and Fuller. The Cardinals got back into the set behind a 9-2 run that trimmed the Marietta edge to 15-11. Otterbein battled all the way back and tied the game at 16 points apiece. The Cardinals won the second set, 25-23.
The third set was close early, as the set remained deadlocked at 4-4. Otterbein took a 9-5 edge when they scored five of the next six points. The Pioneers rallied to trim the Cardinals lead to 14-13, behind kills from Kaiser and Fellers. Marietta battled for the remainder of the set, but could not complete the comeback and fell, 25-22.
The Pioneers were led by Phelps, she had 23 kills and seven total blocks in the two matches. Fellers had a team leading 11 kills in the second game, and 13 total blocks on the night. Defensively Marietta was led by Davis, she had 28 digs in the two matches, and tallied a pair of service aces. Nader notched 61 assists combined in the two matches and had one ace on the night.
The Pioneers will return to the court Friday (March 19) when they host Heidelberg University, with the first game scheduled for 6 p.m.
Fans can follow all of 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.
