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Otterbein University Athletics

Otterbein Cardinals

VB OAC Champs 242
3
Winner Otterbein OTT 21-8,7-2 OAC
1
Marietta MAR 23-1,9-0 OAC
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Otterbein OTT 25 25 11 26 (3)
Marietta MAR 20 23 25 24 (1)

Game Recap: Women's Volleyball | | Written by Wes Mayberry (Photo by Marvet Hejazin)

Three-Peat: Volleyball defeats No. 8 Marietta to win third straight OAC Tournament championship

MARIETTA — The Otterbein volleyball team won 3-1 at No. 8 Marietta on Saturday afternoon to win its third straight Ohio Athletic Conference Tournament championship. The Cardinals won 25-20, 25-23, 11-25, 26-24 to end the Pioneers' undefeated season and extend their current winning streak to seven games while earning an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament. Senior Amanda Troyer was named the tournament MVP, and senior Kennedy Hoffman and junior Olivia Vitaz joined her on the All-Tournament Team.

The Basics
  • Records: Otterbein (21-8 overall), Marietta (23-1 overall)
  • Venue: Ban Johnson Arena - Marietta, Ohio
  • Otterbein is the No. 2 seed in the tournament, and Marietta is the No. 1 seed. The Cardinals received a first-round bye and defeated third-seeded Mount Union 3-1 in the semifinals. The Pioneers received a first-round bye and defeated fourth-seeded John Carroll 3-0 in the semifinals.
  • The 2024 NCAA Division III Tournament selection show airs Monday at 1 p.m. on NCAA.com.
  • OAC Tournament page
Otterbein Stat Leaders
  • Hoffman led the Cardinals in kills with 18. Senior Kristen Scherger added 11 kills to go with nine from freshman Emerson Baum. Scherger hit a team-best .241.
  • Troyer finished with a team-high 17 digs to go with 16 from sophomore Ashley Kefauver.
  • The Cardinals recorded 16 service aces. Troyer and Vitaz posted five each to go with three each from Kefauver and junior Grace Ganz.
  • Baum added six blocks to her stat line, and junior Maddie Mergen added five blocks.
  • Vitaz finished with a team-best 33 assists.
Match Highlights
  • Marietta opened up a 7-4 lead in the early stages of the first set, but Otterbein came back to tie the score at 7-7 with an ace by Vitaz bookended by kills from Hoffman and Baum. The teams played to a 14-all tie, and Otterbein scored the next two points via a kill from Scherger and ace from Troyer. The Cardinals led the rest of the way en route to scoring the final three points of the set for the 25-20 win.
  • A 5-0 Otterbein run that included two kills from Hoffman, one kill from Baum and an ace from Vitaz put the Cardinals up 17-9 in the second set. The Pioneers later came back to tie the score at 19. With the score tied at 23, the Cardinals closed out the set with a kill from Hoffman and ace from Vitaz for the 25-23 victory.
  • Marietta dominated the third set, closing it out with a 10-1 run for the 25-11 win.
  • The Cardinals built a 15-10 advantage in the fourth set and continued to lead until the Pioneers fought back to tie the score at 17. Trailing 21-20, the Cardinals scored the next three points, as an ace from Vitaz was bookended by kills from Hoffman. Marietta responded to take a 24-23 edge, putting the Pioneers on the verge of forcing a fifth set. But the Cardinals clinched the championship by scoring the next three points, as a kill from Baum was sandwiched by a pair of Marietta errors.
  • Otterbein finished with 44 kills while hitting .103, and Marietta finished with 46 kills while hitting .190.
Notables
  • This year marks Otterbein's 28th OAC Tournament appearance. The Cardinals have a 26-23 record in tournament play with six championships (2012, 2017, 2020-21, 2022, 2023, 2024).
  • Marietta defeated Otterbein 3-1 at home during the teams' regular-season meeting on Oct. 9, ending a 17-game losing streak to the Cardinals. Marietta is ranked No. 8 in the latest AVCA/TARAFLEX NCAA Division III Poll.
  • Last season, Hoffman was named OAC Tournament MVP, joining Troyer and Vitaz on the All-OAC Tournament Team.
  • Hoffman, Troyer, Vitaz, Scherger and Baum were selected to the 2024 All-OAC Team on Monday. Hoffman was a First Team honoree, while Troyer and Vitaz were named to the Second Team, and Scherger and Baum were Honorable Mention picks.
  • Hoffman closed the regular season with 1,014 career kills, becoming the 10th student-athlete in the history of the Otterbein volleyball program to surpass 1,000 career kills. She now ranks seventh all-time at Otterbein in career kills with 1,048. Katie Peterson ('00-'03) ranks sixth all-time with 1,063.
  • Troyer ranks third all-time at Otterbein in career service aces (176) and fourth all-time in career digs (1,682).
  • Vitaz has 1,790 career assists.
  • Head coach Monica Wright is in her 18th year at Otterbein and boasts an all-time record of 375-185 at the helm of the Cardinals.
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