TIFFIN, Ohio—The No. 8 Heidelberg University volleyball team will take its 13-match win streak to Berea, Ohio on Tuesday, Oct. 11 to face Baldwin-Wallace College in an Ohio Athletic Conference match. Game time at Ursprung Gymnasium is slated for 7 p.m.
The Berg, 21-2 overall and 4-0 in the OAC following a conference sweep of Muskingum University and non-conference win over Case Western Reserve University on Sunday, has won 39 of 41 sets during its 13-match winning streak, including streaks of 12 and 21 matches. Heidelberg has claimed 16 consecutive victories against OAC opponents dating back to last season.
Against CWRU, senior reigning OAC player of the year Jackie Reinhart (New Riegel) had her first career 20-20 game, with 20 kills and 25 digs, and senior second-team All-OAC outside hitter Venessa Haase (Miamisburg) had a double-double of her own with 10 kills and 19 digs.
The Tri-Color is led by Reinhart, who assumed the team lead in kills with 165 (2.50 kills per set) over the weekend, and junior second-team All-OAC outside hitter Marian Bevington (Celina/Parkway) with 163 kills (2.67 kps) and a team-high .352 hitting percentage. Haase has notched 153 kills (2.48 kps).
The setting combination of junior Rachel Ferguson (Brighton, Mich./Brighton) and sophomore Alexa Frank (Tiffin/Calvert) will direct the offense. Ferguson owns a team-high 386 assists (6.13 assists per set), while Frank has tallied 258 helpers (4.37 aps). Both have combined to set the offense up for a team hitting percentage of .285.
Defensively, three student-athletes have tallied 200 or more digs, led by freshman libero Tessa Benanzer (Fort Loramie) with 280 (4.59 digs per set). Reinhart (264, 4.00 dps) and Haase (200, 3.23 dps) have also eclipsed the 200-dig mark. At the net, Bevington leads with 72 total blocks (1.18 blocks per set).
The Yellow Jackets, 13-10 overall and 1-2 in the OAC, are led offensively by Amanda Sawicki with 276 kills (3.21 kps) and Jessica Stitts with 620 assists (8.99 aps). On defense, Natalie Emmons has totaled a team-high 445 digs (5.17 dps), while Rachel Switalski leads with 36 total blocks.
Following Tuesday’s match, Heidelberg will host the University of Mount Union on Saturday, Oct. 15 in another OAC tilt at 7 p.m.