MARIETTA, Ohio – The Marietta College volleyball team opened the Ohio Athletic Conference schedule Friday (Oct. 3) evening as they battled with Ohio Northern University.  Before the match, the excited Ban Johnson Arena crown was treated to the unveiling of an Ohio Athletic Conference regular season championship banner, celebrating the Pioneers undefeated regular season in 2024.  Following the mini celebration, the Pioneers defeated the Polar Bears in straight sets 3-0 (25-18, 25-23, 25-19).  With the win, the Pioneers move to 10-4 (1-0 in OAC).  Ohio Northern drops to 6-12 overall and 0-1 in the Ohio Athletic Conference.

Set one got off to a quick start for the Pioneers as they jumped out to an 7-2 lead, getting key kills from Jillian Fellers (Alliance, Ohio/Marlington), Emily Piehler (Medina, Ohio/Medina), and AnnaBelle Hacker (Centerville, Ohio/Alter).  Later, the Polar Bears took three straight possessions and cut the lead to a single point, 12-11.  Marietta answered with a kill from Fellers and Karley Allwood (Wadsworth, Ohio/Wadsworth) and further extended the lead later as Fellers delivered a powerful kill to put the lead at 19-13.  The Polar Bears tried to inch back in but could not overcome the difference.  Karly Launder (Pleasant City, Ohio/Meadowbrook) delivered the final kill and Marietta took the first set, 25-18.  
 
Marietta took advantage of some Ohio Northern attack errors and a trio of kills from Fellers to rush out to a 6-3 lead.  The Polar Bears answered with a five-point rally to take over the lead at 10-8 and then extended the lead to four as Julian Gaier delivered a kill, putting the score at 20-16.  Marietta began to come back as Launder scored on two straight kills, causing ONU to call a timeout.  When play resumed, Marietta got a kills from Piehler to tie the score at 22 and then took advantage of a pair of Polar Bear attack errors to clinch a tough set two victory, 25-23.

Facing elimination, the Polar Bears began strong in the third set, taking a 4-1 lead.  Marietta came back with kills from Allwood, Piehler, and Hacker to tie the score at six.  After the two teams traded the next several possession, the Pioneers claimed a 12-11 lead after Launder brought a strong kill.  The lead extended to three after Hacker and Fellers joined up on a key block, causing Ohio Northern to call a timeout.  The Polar Bears had one rally left in them and got the score to within one, 20-19.  Marietta, though, closed out the scoring with the final five points, two from kills from Launder, and closed out the set and the match, 25-19.

Launder led the Pioneers with 13 kills.  Fellers and Hacker finished with 10 kills apiece.   Emory Spitler (Lebanon, Ohio/Lebanon) led with 35 assists and Shannon led a fine Pioneer defensive effort, leading the way with 19 digs.

Marietta hits the road for a showdown with Otterbein University this Wednesday (Oct. 8) with the match beginning at 7 p.m. The Cardinals received the top ranking in the preseason to win the OAC. 

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 X and Instagram.