Volleyball claims two conference wins

Volleyball claims two conference wins

Emily Peters
eep004@marietta.edu

Freshman Maddie Nader serves. Photo by Matt Peters

The Marietta Pioneers volleyball team is on a two-game winning streak after taking their last two home conference matches against Wilmington College and Capital University to move them up to seventh in the Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) standings.

The Pioneers, who are 3-3 in conference play and 11-13 overall, started their two-game winning streak on Saturday Oct. 14 with a 3-0 win over the Wilmington Quakers (0-6, 4-18). The Pioneers posted set scores of 25-21, 25-19, and 25-20.

Senior outside hitter Darcy Irish (Lagrange, Ohio/Keystone) led both teams with a match-high 18 kills and a .387 attack percentage. Fellow senior outside hitter Erica Denallo (Parma, Ohio/Independence) added 11 kills while freshman middle Sam Ritenour (Jeffersonville, Ohio/Miami Trace) added 6.

 

Defensively, Denallo led the Pioneers with a match-high 19 digs while setter Aly Wiseman (London, Ohio/Bishop Ready) notched nine from the backline.

The setting duties were split between Wiseman and fellow freshman Maddie Nader (Vermilion, Ohio/Vermilion). The pair had 22 and 20 assists, respectively. Nader also recorded 7 digs on the defensive line.

Pioneer volleyball players huddle at Wilmington game. Photo by Matt Peters

The Pioneers carried over the energy from their Saturday win into their next conference match on Tuesday Oct. 17 at home in the Ban Johnson Arena against the Capital University Crusaders (1-5, 9-17) in a 3-1 win. The Pioneers posted set scores of 25-23, 25-18, 20-25 and 25-17, securing themselves a spot in the first round of the conference tournament starting Nov. 2.

Irish once again led the Pioneers’ frontline with 14 kills and a .323 attack percentage against the Crusaders. Denallo and junior middle Amanda Arrowood (Reynoldsburg, Ohio/Groveport Madison) had nine and eight kills, respectively.

The setting duties were split three ways between Wiseman, Nader, and classmate Ellie Gerber (New Philadelphia, Ohio/New Philadelphia). Wiseman recorded a team-high 19 assists while Gerber dished out 11 and Nader posted seven.

The Pioneers’ defensive frontline was strong as Arrowood and fellow junior Grace Haas (Marietta, Ohio/Marietta) forced the ball back on the Crusaders’ side with six blocks. Ritenour added five blocks and senior libero Emily Peters (Elyria, Ohio/Keystone) anchored the backrow with 19 digs. Denallo and sophomore Shannon Haessly (Marietta, Ohio/Marietta) added 12 and 11 digs, respectively.

Seniors Emily Peters (left) and Erica Denallo (right) defend against Capital University. Photo by Matt Peters

The Pioneers hit the road Saturday Oct. 21 for a pair of games in Tiffin, Ohio. Marietta takes on Heidelberg University (3-3, 12-11) in a conference match at 1 p.m. and Case Western Reserve University (15-9) in a nonconference match at 3 p.m.