The BU volleyball team defeated Ottawa University on Friday for the 18th consecutive time, 3-1. The victory came as the fifth-straight win for the Wildcats, who now stand at 9-6 overall on the season.

Sophomore setter Hannah Bettge said her team was lagging when it came out for the first set, which was its only loss of the night, 18-25.

“We started out slow, but I think that we did a good job of getting ourselves together and coming out strong in the second game,” Bettge said. “(We) started switching things up when things weren’t working and our defense and coverage was good. My hitters were definitely putting balls down.”

The ‘Cats put the game away in the next three sets, 25-19, 25-20 and 25-15.

The match showcased another strong defensive outing for the Wildcats. The team had a total of 85 digs and held the Braves to a .200 hitting percentage. Senior libero Sara Slater led the team with 36 digs.

Offensively, BU posted 49 kills as a team. Freshman Kallie Fischer says team morale and quickness bring offensive success.

“Our team helps each other out so much,” Fischer said. “We aren’t afraid to give each other advice, and this makes us better as a whole. We also have a setter who is really smart. She moves the ball around and sets quickly so the other team has a difficult time reading our offense.”

When the fourth set rolled around, the Wildcats seemed to have all the kinks worked out and ended hitting at a .333 percentage. Bettge finished the match as the leader in both assists and kills with 35 and 12, respectively. Also breaking into double digits for kills was senior Shannon McCarty, who put away 10.

Baker will host its first Heart of America Athletic Conference game of the season at 7 p.m. on Tuesday in Collins Center. The Wildcats will take on Peru State, which is currently 7-5 on the season.