Volleyball energizes the Steele Center in a five-set thriller

The Muskingum volleyball team energized the Steele Center on Tuesday night when it hosted Otterbein for its home and Ohio Athletic Conference opener. The Muskies and Cardinals battled for five sets with Otterbein claiming the 3-2 (26-28, 25-22, 25-20, 26-28, 15-8) win.

The Basics

• Records: Muskingum (12-3 overall, 0-1 OAC), Otterbein (15-1 overall, 1-0 OAC)
• Location: New Concord, Ohio - Anne Steele Center

Notables

• The game marked the home and Ohio Athletic Conference opener for Muskingum.
• This marked Muskingum's first five set match of the season.
• Otterbein received votes in the latest AVCA Division III Coaches Top 25 Poll.

First Set

• The opening set was an even battle before the Muskies used a late four-point surge to take a 24-20 lead.
• Otterbein battled back and tied the contest at 25, but the Muskies answered the charge and scored the final two points to take the set.
• The Muskies logged 11 kills in the set. The Cardinals had 14 spikes.
• Freshman Brooke Fatheree, senior Taylour Fatheree and freshman Kayla Hall led the attack with three kills each.
• Junior Jordan Youngs led the back row effort with five digs.

Second Set

• The Muskies looked poised to take a take control of the match with a 20-16 lead. However, following an Otterbein timeout, the Cardinals closed the set on a 9-2 run to even the match.
• Otterbein logged a .353 hitting percentage in the frame and was led by Morgan Lowenkamp who had five kills.
• Taylour Fatheree led the Muskies with nine kills, while freshman Erin Dickson registered six assists.
• Muskingum recorded 17 kills and a .256 hitting percentage.

Third Set

• Muskingum jumped out to a 10-3 lead to open the set. Brooke Fatheree and Taylour Fatheree led the assault with two kills each.
• Otterbein responded with a 12-0 run to take a 15-10 lead. 
• Muskingum fought back and trimmed its deficit to one on two occasions, but Otterbein closed out the set with a 5-1 spurt.
• Brooke Fatheree led the Muskies with five kills and six digs. Muskingum mustered 11 kills.
• Lowenkamp paced Otterbein with six kills, while Andrea Miller had 12 assists.

Fourth Set

• Muskingum again got off to a fast start and built a 10-4 advantage.
• Otterbein rallied again with a 16-5 surge to take a 20-15 lead and seemed ready to close out the match.
• The Muskies fought back and tied the set at 23-23 and fended off two match points before tallying back-to-back points to claim the 28-26 tilt and force the fifth set.
• Hall helped lead the Muskies with three kills. Freshman Madison Sikorski logged five digs.
• Muskingum ended the set with 14 kills.

Fifth Set

• Otterbein jumped out to a quick 4-1 lead and extended it to 9-4 to take control of the set.
• Muskingum closed the gap to 10-7, but the Cardinals ended the match with a 5-1 burst to seal the win.

Inside The Numbers

• Brooke Fatheree led the Muskingum with 17 kills, while Taylour Fatheree had 16 kills. 
• Senior Chloe Brandewie and Hall each had eight kills.
• Dickson registered 23 assists and eight digs.
• Senior Courtney Nestoff logged a team-high 20 digs.
• As a team, Muskingum had 57 kills, 41 assists and 84 digs.
• Lowenkamp led the Cardinals with a game-high 20 kills, while Hadley Sterett added 14.
• Miller logged 34 assists and Ashley Leon had 26 digs.
• Otterbein ended the night with 68 kills, 53 assists and 92 digs.

Up Next

• Muskingum plays at Heidelberg on Saturday, September 30. Game time is slated for 1:00 p.m.