MARIETTA, Ohio – For the fourth straight season, the Otterbein University Cardinals clinched the Ohio Athletic Conference Volleyball Tournament Championship. The matchup was the same as last year, as the No. 2-seeded Cardinals were on the road at top-seeded Marietta College. Otterbein also matched last season's 3-1 score this time around, taking the 2025 tournament title by a two-set advantage (25-14, 25-23, 19-25, 25-18) at the Ban Johnson Arena on Saturday, November 15.

The victory marks the seventh OAC Volleyball Tournament Championship for Otterbein, all coming over the last 14 seasons. The Cardinals have now won titles in 2012, 2017, 2020-21, 2022, 2023, 2024, and 2025. This season's squad also secured a share of the regular-season OAC Championship, though the Cardinals entered the tournament as the No. 2 seed after Marietta won the tiebreaker with a victory in the teams' head-to-head meeting earlier this fall.

Otterbein earned the OAC's automatic bid to the 2025 NCAA Division III Women's Volleyball Tournament, where the Cardinals will compete on the national stage for the 12th time since 2010. The entire bracket will be revealed on Monday, November 17, at 1:00 p.m. on NCAA.com via the selection show.

#2 Otterbein (24-5) 3, #1 Marietta (17-8) 1 (25-14, 25-23, 19-25, 25-18)

• Otterbein set the tone in the opening set, jumping out to a 4-0 lead and never looking back. The Cardinals led by as many as 13 points (18-5) and hit .378 with 17 kills in the first frame to win 25-14.
• Marietta responded by leading the dance for most of the second set, and the Pioneers were in position to even the score with a 23-20 edge. However, Otterbein orchestrated a 5-0 run to clinch the set 25-23 and take a commanding 2-0 lead. 
• The home team hung on and forced a fourth set as Marietta outlasted Otterbein in a defensive battle in set three. The Pioneers held the Cardinals to a .021 hitting percentage and won 25-19 to stay alive.
• The defending champions got back to business in the fourth set, winning 25-18 as Otterbein's offense clinched the title by hitting .341 while their defense held Marietta to a match-low .093 mark.
• Otterbein's balanced offense had four players post double-digit kills, including 14 from senior Brooke Barb (Johnstown, OH / Johnstown-Monroe), 12 from Lexi Scott (Chillicothe, OH / Zane Trace), 11 from Chandler Crowell (Lancaster, OH / Lancaster), and 10 from Emerson Baum (Howell, MI / Howell).
• Marietta was powered by a pair of high-scoring double-doubles, as Karly Launder (Pleasant City, OH / Meadowbrook) posted 15 kills and 11 digs, while senior Jillian Fellers (Alliance, OH / Marlington) had 15 kills and 17 digs.
• Two senior setters had huge games, with Otterbein's Olivia Vitaz (Milan, OH / Edison) posting a 37-assist, 13-dig, five-kill line, and Marietta's Emory Spitler (Lebanon, OH / Lebanon) going for 33 assists, 11 digs, and three kills.
• Defensively, junior Ashley Kefauver (Columbus, OH / Hamilton Township) led the Cardinals with 23 digs, while senior Keira Shannon (Roscoe, IL / Hononegah Community) paced the Pioneers with 22.
• Otterbein benefitted from a 10-4 advantage in service aces throughout the match, and out-hit Marietta .217 to .167 overall.

Coaches finalized their picks for the OAC All-Tournament Team following the title match. The All-Tournament selections feature three players from the championship team (Otterbein), including the tournament MVP, two from the runner-up (Marietta), and one from each of the non-advancing semifinalists (Muskingum University and Ohio Northern University).

2025 OAC Volleyball All-Tournament Team

MVP: Olivia Vitaz, Otterbein

Brooke Barb, Otterbein

Emerson Baum, Otterbein

Jillian Fellers, Marietta

Emory Spitler, Marietta

Josie Niemeyer, Muskingum

Julian Gaier, Ohio Northern