Box Score
WESTERVILLE, Ohio – The Otterbein University volleyball team played to a three-set win over John Carroll University in the opening round of the Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) Tournament Tuesday evening in the Rike Center.

The Cardinals, seeded fourth in the eight-team bracket, defeated No. 5 seed JCU by scores of 25-18, 25-20, 28-26 to advance to its fifth-straight OAC Tournament semifinal.

Otterbein, now 26-6 overall and ranked No. 16 in the national poll, will travel to top-seed University of Mount Union Friday for a semifinal matchup with the 10th-ranked Purple Raiders at 7 p.m.. Heidelberg and Ohio Northern will square off in the first semifinal contest at 5 p.m., with each winner returning for the title match Saturday afternoon.

The Cards have taken the last two meetings with the Raiders, both played on the road, earning a four-set victory in last year's OAC Tournament championship and also earlier this season on Oct. 26 in three sets.

"We expect another tough match up there at Mount Union, but we will be ready," junior Kendel Kellogg said. "We have really stuck together the last few times against them, so I think it will be important to keep picking each other up and just go point by point."

The third set with John Carroll saw ties at 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, and 26 before the Cardinals managed to win two-consecutive points and secure the victory. Kellogg turned in her best hitting performance of the season on the outside, tying a season-best 15 kills while committing just one error on 26 attempts (.538).

Annie Juenger blasted 13 kills while middle hitter Krystin Estes turned in a career-high nine kills, and just one error, on 16 attempts to hit .500 for the night. Setter Tabatha Piper dished out a match-high 43 assists as the Cardinal offense hit .354 compared to JCU's .181 output.

"I thought our offense was really connecting," Kellogg said. "I think you attribute that to good passing out of the back, which really helped Tab set us up for success at the net."

Sarah Orlandi and Alexa Webber combined to register 21 kills for the visiting Blue Streaks, which end their season at 19-11 overall.

Click here for more information on the 2013 OAC Volleyball Tournament.