Fort grad hits milestone for Cougar volleyball

Cassidy Rammel solidified herself as one of the best offensive players in Cougar history.

Rammel, a 2015 Fort Recovery High School graduate, became just the sixth player in history to record 1,000 kills for the University of Saint Francis volleyball team as the Cougars went 4-0 over Labor Day weekend in the Mountain Madness Tournament in Milligan, Tennessee.

The senior tallied 39 kills, including a dozen in a 3-1 win against Union on Friday and 10 in a 3-0 sweep of University of the Cumberlands on Saturday as she was named to the all-tournament team.

Rammel added a season-high 15 kills on Wednesday, leading the NAIA No. 19 Cougars (12-2) past Indiana Wesleyan 3-1 for the team’s eighth-straight win.

University of Saint Francis is ranked in the NAIA top 25 for the first time in program history.

The former Indian leads the Cougars with 126 kills on the season. She sits at 1,047 kills for her career, just 22 away from passing 2015 USF graduate Carrie Clark for fifth on the career kills list.

Ava Kunkler

Jay County – 2016

Set a career-high for kills in leading the USF volleyball team to a 25-16, 20-25, 25-13, 25-17 victory over host Milligan in the Mountain Madness Tournament on Friday.

The junior recorded 14 kills to go with her six digs while also assisting on a pair of blocks. She also had an assist.

Kunkler added nine kills in a win over University of the Cumberlands the following day, and contributed nine more kills on Wednesday in the victory against Indiana Wesleyan.

Kendra Siefring

Jay County – 2016

Totaled 29 kills over four matches for the University of Saint Francis volleyball team as it went 4-0 during the Mountain Madness Tournament.

She had six kills in both matches against Union and Milligan, before tallying nine and eight kills respectively in wins over University of the Cumberlands and Pikeville.

Siefring has 94 kills on the season, which is fourth on the team for the Cougars.

Kylie Osborne

Jay County – 2016

Had a match-high 16 kills in powering the Anderson University volleyball team to a 25-22, 25-13, 25-23 sweep of Goshen College on Tuesday.

The junior also had four digs and an assist in the win.

Osborne notched 13 kills, 12 digs, two assists, one ace and a block on Saturday in a 3-0 victory over Iowa Wesleyan, one match after posting eight kills, six digs and three aces in a 3-1 loss to Greenville on the second day of the Illinois College Invitational. 

She began the season by tallying eight kills, five digs, a pair of aces and one assist Friday as the Ravens (3-2) got swept by Grinnell.

Abby Barcus

Jay County – 2017

Was named to the all-tournament team for the second consecutive weekend as a member of the Wright State University volleyball team as it won the Comfort Inn-Vitational hosted by Morehead State.

She had eight kills, 10 digs and a block in a 3-0 sweep of host Morehead State on Saturday, a day after posting nine kills and a dig in a sweep of Mercer and tallying match highs in kills (17) and digs (29) in helping the Raiders (5-1) beat Saint Francis in four sets.

Kiah Wendel

Fort Recovery – 2018

Was key defensively for the Owens Community College volleyball team in helping the Express keep the winning streak alive.

She posted a career-high 24 digs in a 3-1 win Sunday over Waubonsee, a day after recording 13 and 14 digs respectively in victories agains St. Clair County and Kellogg. 

The freshman had 31 total digs as the Express (12-1) beat Muskegon, Oakland and Kalamazoo Valley on Friday.

In a dozen matches, Wendel’s 140 digs on the season, which is 60 more than any other player on the team, is tied with Hannah Nelson of Ridgewater for 12th in all of the National Junior College Athletic Association.

Bailey McIntire

South Adams – 2017

Made his collegiate debut for the Purdue University men’s cross country team on Friday in the Crusader Classic Invitational at Valparaiso.

The redshirt freshman had a time in the 6K race of 18 minutes, 41.4 seconds, which was 37th overall and fourth-best for the Boilermakers.

Purdue totaled 50 points to finish second in the meet. Notre Dame had a perfect score of 15 to win, and the host Crusaders were third with 77 points.

Zach Chaney

Jay County – 2016

Made his collegiate debut for the Ancilla College men’s soccer team on Aug. 29.

The goalkeeper stopped the only shot he faced for a clean sheet as the Chargers shut out Lake Michigan 4-0 on Aug. 29.

Three days later Chaney allowed six goals as Ancilla fell to Parkland 6-0 in its home opener. He faced 14 shots on goal and turned away eight.

Monday, he made eight saves on nine shots as the Chargers (2-1) beat Morton, 2-1.

Madi Wurster

South Adams – 2018

Had a career-high four kills for the Purdue Fort Wayne volleyball team on Saturday in a 3-1 win against Niagara in the final match of the Golden Flashes Classic at Kent State University.

The freshman also finished with two kills and assisted on a block Saturday as the Mastodons (5-3) opened the tournament by sweeping Morgan State.

Drew LeFever

South Adams – 2016

Made his season debut for the Taylor University football team in a 43-31 victory over Indiana Wesleyan on Saturday.

It was the first game in program history for IWU.

The junior running back had 11 carries, which was second on the team. He gained 33 yards, with his longest rush covering nine yards.

Derek Wanner

South Adams – 2015

Also made his season debut for the Taylor football team on Saturday.

The senior defensive back had two solo tackles. The first came in the second quarter following an 8-yard carry by Joshua McKenzie.

He brought down Dontea Henderson following a 22-yard kick return in the third quarter.

Olivia Von Gunten

South Adams – 2018

Competed in her first collegiate race for the Huntington University women’s cross country team on Friday in the Manchester University Hokum Karem.

The freshman joined sophomore Aspen Dirr to finish sixth with their combined time of 38 minutes, 54.3 seconds.

The University of Saint Francis tandem of Hailley O’Neill and Caren Hernandez won in 37:00.5.

Travis Sutter

Fort Recovery – 2017

Earned a top-10 finish for the Ohio Northern men’s cross country team on Friday in the season-opening Back to the Nature Preserve Invitational at Bluffton University.

The sophomore crossed the finish line of the 6K race in 20 minutes, 2.43 seconds, edging Jack Adams of Findlay by a half second.

Teammate Ian McVey won the race in 18:52.99, as the Polar Bears finished runner-up as a team with 38 points. Findlay won with 25 points.

Collin Haines

Jay County – 2018

Helped the IU South Bend men’s golf team as it finished third in the CCAC Cup Aug. 27 and 28 at Ravisloe Country Club in Homewood, Illinois.

The Titans totaled 600 for the two-day tournament, behind Holy Cross (582) and Saint Francis of Illinois (593).

Haines shot 84 on the first day, and improved by four strokes on day two for a total of 164 as he tied for 25th overall and fifth on his team.

Gabbie Mann

Jay County – 2015

Played for the Purdue Fort Wayne women’s soccer team in a pair of 4-0 losses recently.

She started on Friday on the road against Loyola Chicago and registered a shot on goal in 46 minutes of play.

Two days later at home against Tennessee Tech, she logged 40 minutes but did not take a shot.

Kirsten Jutte

Fort Recovery – 2016

Made contributions to the Capital University volleyball team as it began the season with four consecutive losses.

She had a season-high four kills, three digs and assisted on a block in a 3-0 loss Tuesday to Earlham.

Jutte totaled four kills on Saturday as the Crusaders (0-4) fell to Ohio Wesleyan and Adrian by 3-0 and 3-1 margins respectively. 

Chloe Trissel

Jay County – 2018

Played for the IU Kokomo volleyball team on Friday in a 25-9, 25-12, 25-12 win against Kentucky Christian.

The freshman played two sets and notched the first two digs of her career.