Volleyball opens OAC Tournament play with 25-20, 25-12, 25-23 Quarterfinal victory over Mount Union
By Tim Glon
ADA — Junior Kristin Sessler had a double-double with 13 kills and 10 digs to lead No. 25-ranked Ohio Northern to a 25-20, 25-12, 25-23 victory in the Quarterfinals of the Ohio Athletic Conference Tournament on Tuesday evening at the ONU Sports Center.
The second-seeded Polar Bears improve to 23-5 overall, while the seventh-seeded Purple Raiders end their season at 15-13.
Sophomore Haley Potters had 12 kills, junior Ashley Borchers dished out 37 assists and sophomore Megan Nieszala had 17 digs for ONU.
"I thought we played well for most of the match," ONU head coach Kate Witte said. "We got into a rhythm offensively in the first two sets. It's survive and advance in tournament play and we are pleased to be moving on."
In Set 1, Northern used an 8-2 run to turn a slim 13-11 lead into a 21-13 advantage. Northern his a blistering .366 in the set with 19 kills on only 41 attempts.
The Polar Bears rolled in set two, leading 4-1, 7-3 and 12-5 early on.
A 5-0, capped by back-to-back-to-back aces by Nieszala, extended Northern's advantage to an impressive 20-8.
ONU hit .353 in the set with 13 kills on 34 attempts.
Set 3 was a tight affair throughout, as neither team led by more than three points at any point.
A kill by Borchers gave ONU an 18-15 lead, but the Purple Raiders rallied with the next three points to tie the set.
After a Polar Bear timeout, Northern would score the next four points, capped by a kill from Sessler, to go up 22-18.
Mount got within 24-23, but a kill from senior Ellie Gillespie won the set and match for the Polar Bears.
Mount Union was led by Brooke Knollman with 12 kills and Allison Baird with 25 digs.
ONU hit .279 for the match with 47 kills and 111 errors on 129 attempts, while the Purple Raiders hit .145 with 38 kills and 20 errors on 124 attempts.
The polar Bears will now host sixth-seeded Otterbein in the semifinals on Thursday at 7 pm at the ONU Sports Center.
The finals are set for Saturday at 2 pm at the highest seeded semifinal winner.
