TIFFIN, Ohio – The No. 20-ranked Otterbein volleyball team made it a daily double Saturday at Heidelberg, topping the host Student Princes in Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) play before also taking down Albion in a critical nationally-ranked matchup.

The Cardinals, moving to 17-5 overall this season, now also stand a healthy 4-1 against the rest of the OAC with just two weeks left in the regular season. Heidelberg

Berg Highlights (W 3-0):

Otterbein launched its day with a sweep over the Student Princes, having to fight like crazy in the middle frame before standing on top by scores of 25-14, 27-25, 25-16.

The Cardinal defense, getting a combined 26 digs from Bridget Oder and Amanda Troyer, limited the hosts into hitting just .031 for the contest. Setter Carlie Craycraft averaged another 12 assists per set for a group that saw Morgan Hartman (14) and Amber Greeley (11) notch double-digit kills yet again.

Otterbein busted open a 9-8 score in the first set, initially claiming five-straight points on its way to a 14-3 run overall. But the Cards encountered some real trouble in the second frame after HU went on a 7-0 run early… and eventually held an 18-13 cushion…

Monica Wright's bunch responded with a 7-1 run itself, taking a 20-19 edge before the showdown saw deadlocks at all points between 20-25. A kill from Greeley fought off a set point, and the Cards rallied over the next two behind a Heidelberg attack error and kill from Craycraft.

Otterbein then finished the closing set on a 6-0 run to hold off a pesky HU bunch, winning for a seventh-consecutive time in the series.

Albion Highlights (W 3-1):

The Cardinals made it a clean day in the afternoon session, taking down the No. 19-ranked Britons on counts of 25-17, 19-25, 25-16, 25-17. It marked just the third loss of the season for Albion.

Otterbein his a blazing .350 as a team, led by 20 kills from Hartman and 11-2-23 (.435) line off the right arm of Greeley. Aubrey Geis (11) and Kennedy Hoffman (10) also contributed double-digit smacks.

That was all centered around 50 assists from Craycraft, who now sits at 3,934 for her storied career as she closes in on the program's all-time record.

The Cards opened a 20-11 lead in the first frame and coasted, but fell back to even in the match after Albion broke open a 13-13 deadlock in the second. A 10-3 run for Otterbein midway through the third frame was a nice momentum swinger.

Otterbein kept its foot on the gas pedal throughout the fourth, ballooning a slight 13-12 score into a comfortable 20-14 advantage entering the final points.

UP NEXT:

Otterbein gets back home for a pair of matches in the Rike Center, beginning with John Carroll come Wednesday night at 7 p.m. The Cards will then host Baldwin Wallace next weekend for Senior Day.