WESTERVILLE, OHIO – The Otterbein women’s volleyball team took the crown at the Baldwin-Wallace Tournament over the weekend, winning all four matches while dropping just one set overall. Junior Ally Nagle hit .508 with 37 kills en route to Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) Player of the Week honors.
The group began play Friday afternoon with a quick three-set triumph over Wooster by scores of 25-19, 25-22, and 25-18. Nagle led the way with 14 kills on 24 attempts, finishing the match with a .458 percentage.
Senior libero Lindsey Russell and sophomore Emily Caldwell combined for 37 digs while freshman setter Tabatha Piper handed out 33 assists.
The Cardinals then defeated Buffalo State in four sets during the night cap, overcoming a close 24-26 loss in set one to take the next three by counts of 25-10, 25-19, and 25-17. Piper distributed 40 assists while sophomore Annie Juenger led the way with 12 kills.
Otterbein picked right back up with its strong play on day two, cruising past Carnegie Mellon 25-12, 25-20, and 25-21 in the morning before routing Denison by scores of 25-10, 25-10, and 25-20.
Nagle registered 11 kills and one error on 17 attempts vs. Carnegie Mellon, while freshman Kendel Kellog posted seven kills to lead all Cardinals against Denison.
Russell tallied 48 digs over her two matches played, and now sits just 59 shy of the Otterbein career record of 2,046.
Nagle, who was selected to the All-Tournament team, also finished the weekend with eight blocks and six service aces.
Caldwell came up with a career-best 20 digs against the Big Red as Russell was given the match off.
Overall, head coach Monica McDonald was pleased with the depth that her group displayed over the two-day event.
“Every member of the team contributed on the floor at some point this weekend,” she said. “Not all teams can go 17 deep and still win four matches. I’m hoping that our strong start to the season will give us confidence going into another tough weekend with strong regional opponents.”
The team travels to Northwestern of Ohio Tuesday evening and will remain on the road this coming weekend, traveling to play in the Hiram Tournament.
