No. 25 Volleyball falls in 5-set thriller at Heidelberg

TIFFIN — No. 25-ranked Ohio Northern volleyball fell in a 5-set thriller 25-23, 23-25, 20-25, 25-23, 15-12 at Heidelberg in an Ohio Athletic Conference contest at Sieberling Gymnasium.

The Basics

• Records: #25 Ohio Northern (12-6, 2-2 OAC), Heidelberg (13-10, 2-2 OAC)
• Venue: Sieberling Gymnasium — Tiffin, Ohio

Match Highlights

• Senior Ava Ehlinger (New Carlisle/Tecumseh) led the Polar Bears with a team-high 16 kills and 11 digs.
• Junior Erin Wagner (Massillon/Perry) added 15 kills.
• Junior Sonia Dahlin (Minnetonka, Minn.) had 12 kills.
• Junior Lauren James (Farmington Hills, Mich./North Farmington) had 10 kills and four blocks.
• Junior Rachel Jennings (Novi, Mich.) had a team-high 27 digs.
• Senior Grace Conrad (Somerset/Sheridan) had a team-best 37 assists to go with 12 digs.
• In the first set, HU went on a 6-0 run to overcome an 18-13 deficit and take a 19-18 lead. Trailing 24-21, ONU scored twice to rally within 24-23, but HU would hang on for the 25-23 win.
• The Polar Bears built an 18-14 lead in the second set, only to see Heidelberg grab a 23-22 advantage. Northern would score the final three points to win 25-23 and even the match at one set apiece.
• Set 3 saw Ohio Northern build an 18-12 lead. The Student Princes rallied to within 21-19, but the Polar Bears ended the set on a 4-1 run to go ahead 2-1 in the match.
• In the fourth set, HU used a 6-0 run to grab an early 13-8 lead. ONU got back within 24-23, but again Heidelberg held on for a 25-23 set win.
• Heidelberg jumped to a quick 7-3 lead in the fifth and deciding set. The lead was 10-4 when Ohio Northern went on a 4-0 run to get within 10-8. HU led 14-10 and for the third time in the match ONU held off two match points before finally succumbing 15-12.
• The Polar Bears hit .194 with 69 kills, while the Student Princes hit .216 with 63 kills.

Notables

• Jennings has 1,426 career digs, and is now 41 away from joining ONU's all-time top 10 in that category.
• Conrad has 1,625 career assists. She is just 157 assists away from joining ONU's top-10 list in the category.
• Wagner ranks seventh all-time in ONU's top-10 list for hitting percentage, hitting .300 to date.
• ONU leads the all-time series with Heidelberg by a 64-12 margin. ONU is now 22-10 in matches at Heidelberg.
• Sophie Windover is now 12-6 in her first season as head coach of the ONU volleyball team.

Up Next

• The Polar Bears return to action on Saturday when they host OAC foe John Carroll at 1:30 p.m. at the ONU Sports Center.