Sophomore Caity Shirk guides the Pioneers' offense to a pair of victories at the 2006 River City Tournament
Marietta defeats Ohio Valley and Ohio Dominican to open the season 2-0

Sept. 1, 2006
MARIETTA, Ohio — The only piece not returning from last year’s Marietta College volleyball team was the setter. If day one of the 2006 season is an accurate sign, Pioneer fans have found a very capable replacement in sophomore Caity Shirk (Middleburg Heights/Midpark). Shirk, with the help of a veteran core of offensive attackers, led Marietta to two victories Friday (Sept. 1) on the first day of the 16th annual River City Tournament at Ban Johnson Arena.

Marietta opened the Tournament with a straight-set 3-0 victory (32-30, 30-25, 30-21) over Ohio Valley (W.Va.).

Shirk who was making her first collegiate start at setter, collected 35 assists in the win.

The Pioneer offense hit .254 with 48 kills in the match. Marietta added eight service aces. It was led by senior Ellen Doolittle (Louisville, Ky./DuPont Manual) with 13 kills and senior Jaymi Stephens (Hilliard/Hilliard Davidson) with 11 kills. Junior Marissa Barnhart (Avon) added eight.

Defensively, Marietta was paced by junior libero Casey Davis (Amanda/Clearcreek) with 14 digs, while senior Paige Burton (Fairlawn/Archbishop Hoban) added 12 digs and Stephens contributed 11 digs.

The Pioneers combined for 19 total blocks against the Fighting Scots. Barnhart led the way with four solo blocks and four block assists. Shirk, Burton, Stephens and Doolittle each added a pair of solo blocks in the win.

Following a short break for the other opening match, which featured Ohio Dominican defeating Rio Grande, 3-1, to complete, the Pioneers went head-to-head with the ODU Panthers. The Pioneers took the first two games (30-21, 30-27), before dropping the third (30-28). Marietta bounced back with a victory in game four (30-14) to secure the match.

As a team, the Pioneers collected 48 kills and hit .152 in the win. Marietta also finished with 15 service aces.

Shirk finished with 43 assists. Doolittle and Stephens paced the squad with 20 and 12 kills, respectively. Doolittle added six aces, while junior Nikki Veigel (Canton/South) and Burton each had three in the win.

Marietta’s defense totaled 24 blocks against Ohio Dominican; Doolittle had five solo blocks and six block assists. Burton had a team-high 27 digs in the match, while Davis added 22 in the victory.

In the fourth match of the evening, Rio Grande defeated Ohio Valley in five games (23-30, 30-20, 30-27, 26-30, 15-8).

Action resumes Saturday (Sept. 2) at 11 a.m. when Marietta battles Rio Grande and Ohio Valley matches up with Ohio Dominican. Each team will play another match at 1 p.m., and pairings will be based on Tournament records.

Friday’s Results

Marietta (1-0) def. Ohio Valley (1-4), 3-0 (32-30, 30-25, 30-21)

Ohio Dominican (2-2) def. Rio Grande (1-4), 3-1 (28-30, 30-22, 30-17, 37-35)

Marietta (2-0) def. Ohio Dominican (2-3), 3-1 (30-21,30-27, 28-30, 30-14)

Rio Grande (2-4) def. Ohio Valley (1-5), 3-2 (23-30, 30-20, 30-27, 26-30, 15-8)