15th-ranked Muskingum Volleyball crushes Marietta en route to being tied for first in the OAC

The 15th-ranked volleyball team crushed the Marietta Pioneers on Tuesday, 3-0 (25-17, 25-15, 25-11). Muskingum will enter the final Saturday of the regular season tied for first place in the Ohio Athletic Conference with Ohio Northern. The Muskies play at Heidelberg, while the Polar Bears host Mount Union. A victory by Muskingum against Heidelberg would give the Muskies a share of the OAC Regular Season championship or an outright championship with an ONU loss.

The Basics

• Records: Muskingum (24-2, 7-1 OAC), Marietta (14-14, 3-5 OAC)
• Location: Marietta, Ohio – Ban Johnson Arena
• Attendance: 127
• Time: 1:08

Notables

• The Muskies are off to their best start since the 1999 campaign when they advanced to both the OAC and NCAA Tournaments. 
• Muskingum is currently ranked 15th. This marks Muskingum's highest national ranking since 2000.
• The victory was the 11th straight triumph for the Muskies.
• Muskingum is currently tied for first in the OAC with Ohio Northern.
• The Muskies have recorded a total of 17 straight-set victories.

How It Happened

• The Muskies took set one (25-17), two (25-15), and three (25-11).
• As a team, Muskingum tallied 42 kills, 40 assists, 54 digs, and 10 total blocks.
• Junior Maddie McGee guided the Muskies with a team-best 11 kills on 25 attempts, notching a .360 hitting percentage.
• Junior Brooke Fatheree chipped in nine kills on 17 attempts, registering a blistering .529 hitting percentage.
• Junior Brynn Guist dished out eight kills, while junior Jada Briggs tallied six.
• Fatheree also logged nine digs and recorded a team-high four service aces.
• Junior Erin Dickson notched a game-best 26 assists and registered eight digs.
• Freshman Emma Conrad and junior Jessica Cottle amassed two service aces each.
• Cottle also anchored the Muskie backline with a team-high 11 digs.

Inside The Sets

• In set one, Muskingum and Marietta battled neck and neck with neither team gaining more than a three-point lead early on. Muskingum registered six consecutive points to slide past the Pioneers with a score of 14-8. Marietta retaliated with a 5-1 run to get within three-points of the Muskies (16-13). The Pioneers fought to close the gap, but the Muskie momentum could not be halted. A kill by Fatheree locked in the 25-16 victory for the Muskies.
• The battle continued into set two until the Muskies registered four straight points to give them a 13-9 lead over the Pioneers. Muskingum tallied a ferocious 8-1 run to expand the deficit to 21-11. The Pioneers chipped away at the differential, but the Muskies continued to control play. Muskingum recorded the final three points to take the set.
• In set three, the Muskies jumped out to a dominating 11-0 lead. Muskingum registered back-to-back points to extend the gap to 20-4. The Muskies capitalized on Pioneer errors en route to the 25-11 triumph.

Up Next

• Muskingum next travels to Tiffin to compete against the Heidelberg Student Princes on Saturday, November 2. Start time is slated for 1:00 p.m. This marks Muskingum's last game of the 2019 regular season.