BEXLEY, Ohio – The Otterbein volleyball team got its feet under them to begin the 2019 season this weekend, working its way to a perfect 4-0 record at the Pam Briggs Fall Classic across town at Capital University.

The Cardinals worked in a variety of lineups and progressed toward their home opener next Tuesday night against Denison, with start time for that matchup in the Rike Center set for 7 p.m.


Friday vs. Defiance (W 3-0) and St. John Fisher (W 3-1):

Otterbein opened with a comfortable three-set triumph against Defiance, prevailing by scores of 25-13, 25-14, 25-12 behind a balanced effort. The Cards pulled away in the middle of each set for the sweep, ultimately led by nine kills from junior Emily Shuk along with eight from both Tate Eppard and Julia Vermilion. Eppard, who had a line of 5-0-10, also delivered a match-high five service aces.

Setters Carlie Craycraft and Taylor Belcher combined for 31 helpers while libero Ashlyn Leon came up with an even 20 digs.

Otterbein took some time off to relax before its nightcap against St. John Fisher, overcoming a first-set loss to emerge by final counts of 19-25, 25-13, 25-12, 25-15. The opening frame saw a handful of ties until SJF pulled away in the middle stages, but the Cards regrouped to dominate the ensuing three sets.

Bruyako, back to 100 percent health this season following recovery from a knee injury, led three Otterbein players in double-digit kills with a career-high 13. Eppard had 11 and Vermilion added 10 for an offense centered around 36 dimes from Craycraft in the middle.

Leon dug up another 19 balls while Vermilion notched a double-double with a new career-high of 16.

 
Saturday vs. St. Lawrence (W 3-0) and Hiram (W 3-2):

The Cardinals rose for some mid-morning breakfast ball on Saturday, keeping their stride with a 25-19, 25-17, 25-18 victory over St. Lawrence from New York. Otterbein trailed 10-5 in the opening set before settling in, broke open a 13-12 score in the second frame with an 8-1 run, and used a similar theme with a 6-1 spurt down the stretch of the final game.

Eppard blasted 14 kills in the middle, tying the Otterbein single-match record for hitting percentage (.765) with a final line of 14-1-17. She now stands atop the record list with Jessie Boyer from 2002.

Freshman Anna Donner tallied 12 kills herself while Craycraft distributed 26 assists. Otterbein hit .333 as a team compared to just .145 for the opposition.

Otterbein finished off the weekend with a five-set showdown against Hiram, relinquishing a 2-0 advantage before escaping by scores of 25-23, 25-17, 20-25, 15-25, 15-10.

The Cards held a 22-21 lead in the opener before slipping away to the early lead, but the Terriers never went quietly in the middle frames. Otterbein eventually regrouped to secure the fifth and decisive set, which the Cards led 9-8 and ultimately closed on a 6-2 spurt.

Vermilion ripped off a career-high 17 kills to lead the attack while Eppard (13) and Bruyako (12) were right there every step of the way. Craycraft re-upped with 39 assists, and finished the weekend with 120 total, while Leon had 20 digs for the defense.

Eppard was named the Tournament MVP while Vermilion, who registered 12 digs for another double-double in the final outing, joined her as well. Donner just missed a double-double by going for 13 digs and nine kills.