The Ottawa University women's volleyball team begins postseason play as the No. 3 seed in the KCAC Tournament. The Braves will host No. 6 seed Sterling College in the quarterfinal round. Ottawa enters the tournament with an overall record of 13-10, while Sterling is 17-5 overall.
In the road win over Sterling on Oct. 31, Ottawa earned a four-set victory, defeating the Warriors 25-17, 20-25, 28-26, 25-21. The Braves used a balanced offensive attack and strong play at the net to secure the conference victory. Ottawa finished the match with 60 kills, a .195 hitting percentage, 87 digs, and 13 team blocks. Sterling recorded 44 kills, hit .137, finished with 79 digs, and had 10 team blocks.
Ottawa enters the KCAC Tournament as the No. 3 seed after finishing conference play with a 10-3 record. The Braves have a 7-1 record at home. Ottawa won eight consecutive matches from Oct. 7 through Nov. 4 before falling to Bethel College, 3-1, on Nov. 7. The Braves have won nine of their last 11 matches entering postseason play. Ottawa is averaging 11.91 kills, 11.06 assists, 16.45 digs, 1.09 service aces, and 2.38 blocks per set. The Braves have a .176 hitting percentage and have recorded 1,036 kills, 962 assists, 1,431 digs, 95 service aces, and 207 total blocks. Ottawa ranks 11th in the NAIA in blocks per set (2.38). In KCAC play, Ottawa averaged 12.66 kills, 11.86 assists, 16.82 digs, and 2.40 blocks per set while hitting .195.
Bailee Nickel: Leads Ottawa with 267 kills, averaging 3.14 kills per set. Has a .166 hitting percentage, 264 digs, 39 total blocks, and 16 service aces. Leads the Braves with 303 points.
Campbell Stark: Second on the team with 206 kills, averaging 2.37 kills per set. Leads Ottawa with a .321 hitting percentage among its primary attackers. Leads the Braves with 120 total blocks, including 24 solo blocks and 96 block assists. Averages 1.38 blocks per set.
Kira Cherry: Third on the team with 164 kills and averages 1.91 kills per set. Has a .192 hitting percentage and 57 total blocks.
Ciara Gray: Has recorded 140 kills, averaging 1.89 kills per set. Has 71 digs, 26 total blocks, and 16 service aces.
Madison Brauner and
Makela Martinez: Brauner has recorded 418 assists, averaging 4.86 assists per set, along with 192 digs and a team-high 23 service aces. Martinez leads Ottawa with 419 assists, averaging 4.82 assists per set, and has recorded 144 digs.
Carson Schuman: Leads Ottawa with 382 digs, averaging 4.39 digs per set. Has recorded 63 assists and 18 service aces. Schuman became the 11th player in Ottawa women's volleyball history to reach 1,000 career digs earlier this season.
Sterling enters the KCAC Tournament as the No. 6 seed with a 17-5 overall record and an 8-5 KCAC record. The Warriors are 5-2 at home, 8-3 on the road, and 4-0 at neutral sites. Sterling has lost three of its last five matches, including a 3-1 loss to Ottawa on Oct. 31. The Warriors average 12.15 kills, 11.40 assists, 17.87 digs, 1.44 service aces, and 2.76 blocks per set. Sterling has a .202 hitting percentage and has recorded 911 kills, 855 assists, 1,340 digs, 108 service aces, and 207 total blocks. The Warriors rank first in the NAIA in blocks per set (2.76). In KCAC play, Sterling averaged 3.01 blocks per set, also ranking first nationally in that category.
Aliya McClanahan: Leads Sterling with 208 kills, averaging 2.85 kills per set. Has a .360 hitting percentage. Leads the Warriors with 121 total blocks, averaging 1.66 blocks per set. Keala Wilson Brown: Has recorded 142 kills, 375 assists, 238 digs, and a team-high 33 service aces. Averages 5.14 assists and 3.26 digs per set. Has 62 total blocks. Madison Lundeen: Has recorded 134 kills, averaging 1.89 kills per set. Has a .187 hitting percentage and 28 total blocks. Chloe Schmidt: Has recorded 131 kills with a .321 hitting percentage. Is second on the team with 73 total blocks. Taylor "Dru" Lindsey: Leads Sterling with 333 digs, averaging 4.63 digs per set.
Ottawa leads the all-time series against Sterling College, 51-38. The two programs first met on Nov. 6, 1976, with the Braves earning a three-set victory. Ottawa has won 25 of the last 27 meetings against Sterling dating back to Sept. 21, 2012. The Braves won 23 consecutive matches against the Warriors from Sept. 21, 2012, through Nov. 1, 2024. Sterling snapped Ottawa's winning streak with a 3-0 victory on Nov. 1, 2025, in Wilson Field House. Ottawa returned to the win column against the Warriors on Oct. 31, 2026, earning a 3-1 road victory.
Ottawa enters the 2026 KCAC Tournament with a 45-20 all-time tournament record. The Braves have won 10 KCAC Tournament Championships and will look to capture their 11th conference tournament title this postseason. Ottawa has an all-time KCAC Tournament winning percentage of .692. Ottawa has a 4-2 all-time record against Sterling in the KCAC Tournament. This will be the seventh KCAC Tournament meeting between the Braves and Warriors.
