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NEW WILMINGTON, Pa. -- The Marietta College volleyball team delivered a strong performance on Saturday as they swept a pair of matches at the Westminster Invitational on Saturday afternoon.
In the first matchup, the Pioneers dominated Saint Vincent College 3-0 (25-13, 25-20, 25-20). Later in the afternoon, Marietta earned a hard-fought four-set victory 3-1 (25-23, 25-12, 21-25, 25-21) over host Westminster College.
“It was great to see the grit and team effort to come out of the weekend 4-0,” said Marietta head coach Kristy Anderson of the whole weekend.
In the first match, Marietta set the tone early in the opening frame. Elyse Smith orchestrated a balanced attack, repeatedly setting up Karly Launder and Emily Piehler to build a quick 10-4 lead. Middle hitter AnnaBelle Hacker took over midway through the set, throwing down three kills to extend the lead to 18-9. Marietta capitalized on Saint Vincent attack errors before Kendyl Cannon put the exclamation point on a 25-13 set one victory with a kill from Smith.
Marietta jumped out to a quick 4-0 lead in set two behind disciplined ball placement from Smith. Saint Vincent rallied back behind kills from Sabrina George and Meegan Williams, closing the gap to 8-5. The frame turned into a back-and-forth battle midway through, but Marietta’s defense at the net made the difference. High-impact blocks from Hacker, Piehler, and Karley Allwood repeatedly stifled the Bearcats’ comeback attempts. Up 23-17 late, Marietta withstood a brief three-point Saint Vincent run before Allwood hammered down the kill for a set two 25-20 win.
The final set was the tightest contest of the match, featuring ten ties. Saint Vincent kept pace throughout the set with offensive sparks from Aubrey Siwula and Williams, taking a late 20-19 lead following a Marietta error. However, Sarah Podkul stepped up to the service line and completely flipped the momentum. Podkul sparked a match-ending 6-0 run that featured a service ace, a clutch block from Freya Brokken and Launder, and key kills to seal the 25-20 victory and complete the 3-0 sweep.
Hacker led the Pioneers with 12 kills and three blocks. Piehler contributed nine kills and a pair of blocks. Launder brought seven kills and collected 13 digs. Smith led with 34 assists. Kamryn Haynes led the defensive effort with16 gigs. Podkul contributed 10 digs and a pair of services aces.
With the loss, the Bearcats fell to 2-7 over on the season.
In the second match of the afternoon against the host Titans, the opening set featured tight back-and-forth action, with 13 ties throughout the game. Marietta gained early separation via kills from Emily Piehler and Kendyl Cannon, but Westminster stayed within striking distance through steady hitting from Olivia Trent and Morgan O’Brien. Tied 22-22 late in the frame, an attack error by Westminster gave Marietta a slight edge before Kamryn Haynes closed out the set with a clutch service ace. The Pioneers took set one, 25-23.
Marietta blew the second set open early behind an extended serving run from Kamryn Haynes. Holding a slender 3-3 lead, Haynes served seven consecutive points--including back-to-back service aces--to push the lead to 10-3. Marietta continued to capitalize on Titan errors and got some key kills from Cannon and Hacker, smoothly pulling away for a dominant 25-12 set two victory.
With their backs to the wall, Westminster turned it up in set three, taking advantage of an 8-1 run midway through the set to take a 15-8 lead. Strong net defense from Suzie Bishop and primary distribution from Ava Commons kept the Titans in front. Marietta made a late charge behind kills from Cannon and Piehler to trim the deficit to 24-21, but a service error ended the comeback effort to give Westminster the set three victory, 25-21.
Westminster built an early 4-0 advantage, prompting a lineup adjustment from Marietta that brought McKenzie Heil off the bench. Heil became an immediate weapon, pounding six kills in the set--including the game-tying kill at 19-19 and the go-ahead strike at 20-20. Tied 20-20, Marietta surged on a 5-1 match-ending run, culminating in consecutive blocks at the net from Smith, Launder, and Hacker to put the match away with a 25-21 set four victory.
Piehler again led all Pioneers with 10 kills. Cannon and Launder added nine kills apiece. Launder added three blocks. Hacker led the team with four blocks. Smith led with 36 assists and also added 15 digs to the defensive effort. Podkul and Kamryn Haynes both had 16 digs apiece to lead the team.
With the loss, the Titans fell to 7-7 overall. The Pioneers extended their winning streak to six and improved their record to 10-4 overall.
Marietta will next be in action on Friday (Sept. 25) as they travel to battle Transylvania University with a scheduled 6 p.m. start time.
MEN’S SOCCER
UNIVERSITY HEIGHTS -- John Carroll University scored in the final seconds of the match to defeat Marietta College, 1-0, Saturday afternoon in men’s soccer action.
The loss drops Marietta to 2-3-1 on the season. John Carroll improves to 3-3-1 overall.
“This has always been a difficult place to play and today reminded me that nothing has changed,” Marietta head coach Joe Bergin said. “We battled against it all and came up just short. I’m gutted for the boys and yet very proud of the effort. This group of players is slowly changing the narrative of the program.”
Dylan Halm scored an unassisted goal with 38 seconds left in the match to steal the win for John Carroll. The Blue Streaks kept consistent pressure on Marietta all afternoon taking 17 shots to just three for the Pioneers.
Noah Walker went the distance in goal for the Pioneers and recorded seven saves in the match. Bryce Sampson recorded the clean sheet for the Blue Streaks.
Marietta returns home to host Denison on Wednesday. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.