ALLIANCE, Ohio – The Marietta College volleyball team finished the Mount Union Invitational on Saturday (Sept. 5) splitting a pair of matchups. The Pioneers fell to old conference foe John Carroll University 3-1 (23-25, 19-25, 25-14, 13-25), but followed that by defeating Chatham University 3-1 (25-22, 25-23, 26-28, 25-12).
The Pioneers launched into the first set against John Carroll with a fast start, building an early 6-2 advantage behind two kills from
Karly Launder (Pleasant City, Ohio/Meadowbrook) and back-to-back service aces by
Kamryn Haynes (Williamstown, W.Va./Williamstown). Although the Blue Streaks closed the gap to within a single point, Marietta responded with a three-point surge to stretch their lead to 13-9.
AnnaBelle Hacker (Centerville, Ohio/Alter) delivered a pair of kills alongside a key block to keep the Pioneers in front, but John Carroll staged a rapid comeback, mounting a five-point run to surge ahead. Marietta managed to lock the score at 23-23 following a
Kendyl Cannon (Senecaville, Ohio/Meadowbrook) kill, but JCU secured the final two points to take set one, 25-23.
Marietta opened set two by scoring the first two points, but a six-point rally propelled the Blue Streaks to an early 11-5 lead.
Karley Allwood (Wadsworth, Ohio/Wadsworth) recorded three kills and
Kamryn Haynes (Williamstown, W.Va./Williamstown) added two aces as the Pioneers attempted to close the gap, yet JCU sustained its momentum and expanded the advantage. Later in the set, Marietta made a push—fueled by two more kills from Allwood—to trim the deficit to 21-18. However, JCU responded by taking four of the final five points to secure the second set, 25-19.
Facing elimination in the third set, Marietta built a commanding 17-8 lead behind a pair of kills from Launder and Allwood. Although the Blue Streaks attempted to rally, they were unable to close the gap.
McKenzie Heil (Westlake, Ohio/Huron) extended the lead to 11 with a powerful kill, and
Emily Piehler (Medina, Ohio/Medina) provided three of the final four points to lock in a 25-14 set-three win for Marietta.
Early in the fourth set, the Pioneers fell behind 6-2, unable to match the energy from the previous set. Although Hacker delivered a pair of kills to narrow the deficit to two points, John Carroll quickly seized firm control by taking 11 of the next 15 possessions. Late in the set, Marietta put together a three-point run, but the Blue Streaks responded with a three-point rally of their own to seal the match with a 25-13 victory in set four.
Allwood led the Marietta offense with 14 kills in the match and also added four blocks. Launder finished with 10 kills and led the Pioneer defensive effort with 24 digs. Hacker added seven kills and led with five blocks.
Elyse Smith (Zeeland, Mich./Zeeland East) led with 26 assists and added 12 digs,
Keatyn Haynes (Williamstown, W.Va./Williamstown) was close behind with 10 digs.
In the day's second matchup, Marietta and Chatham battled back and forth to reach a 9-9 tie. Backed by two kills from Piehler, the Pioneers grabbed the lead, but the Cougars answered with three consecutive points to even the score. Marietta reclaimed the advantage following multiple Chatham attack errors. However, the Cougars rallied with four straight points to erase the deficit and go ahead 21-20. Closing out the opening set, the Pioneers secured the final four points on kills from Allwood, Piehler, and Hacker to take set one, 25-22.
The Pioneers opened set two with a dominant 13-4 run, fueled by four kills from Piehler. Launder extended the advantage to eight points with a pair of kills. The Cougars fought back, capturing eight of the following 11 points, but a crucial attack error handed Marietta a set point. Despite a late three-point surge by Chatham, Allwood delivered a set-ending kill to secure a 25-23 victory for Marietta in set two.
Facing potential elimination, Chatham started strong in set three, opening up a 13-5 advantage. Although Marietta closed the gap with four unanswered points, the teams exchanged possessions while Chatham maintained a narrow edge. Late in the set, Marietta rallied with four consecutive points—boosted by two aces from Launder—to knot the score at 23. A kill by Cannon gave Marietta a one-point lead to put the score at match point, but Chatham answered by claiming the final three points to secure a 28-26 victory and extend the match.
Chatham led set four 8-7 in early action, but Marietta got a pair of kills from Hacker and took advantage of several Chatham errors to take nine straight points and a 16-8 lead. Launder provided three more kills as the Marietta stretched the lead and Allwood finished the matchup with a powerful kill and Marietta defeated the Cougars 25-12 to claim the win.
Launder led the charge with 12 kills and also provided 15 digs. Piehler added 11 kills and Allwood finished with 10 kills. Hacker had eight blocks to lead the Pioneers. Smith led with 31 assists and added 11 digs.
Keatyn Haynes (Williamstown, W.Va./Williamstown) led with 17 digs.
After the matchup, Allwood was named to the All-Tournament team, as was Mount Union's Zoe Sweigart, John Carroll's Natalie Glowe, DePauw's Madelin Ozersky, Chatham's Zoie Bateman, and Carnegie Mellon's Caroline Smith. Kate Giang, also from Carnegie Mellon, was name Most Valuable Player for the weekend.
The Pioneers will next play this Tuesday (Sept. 8) as they will play their home opener. Marietta will welcome in Hiram College to the Ban Johnson Arena for a matchup scheduled for 7 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 X and Instagram.
