Colorado native Tate Eppard broke through with a breakout junior season, as the 5-11 middle hitter helped guide Otterbein to a 26-7 record and NCAA Tournament appearance.

Eppard was voted Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) Player of the Year after leading the league in kills (410) and kills per set (3.63), finishing with 43 more rips than the next closest individual. She also ranked third in hitting percentage (.332) and fifth in total blocking (86) as the Cards dropped a wild five-set thriller in the OAC Tournament Championship.

Otterbein then advanced to the NCAA Regional in Illinois, beating UW-Whitewater in the opening round before bowing out against No. 2-ranked and host Chicago. Eppard was voted first team All-OAC, first team All-Region and honorable mention AVCA All-American for her efforts.

She had double-digit kills in all but five outings that fall, with a standout performance coming by way of 27 kills and a .571 hitting percentage across four sets with Heidelberg. It marked the fourth-most kills in a single match at Otterbein.

Eppard, maintaining a perfect 4.00 GPA in nursing, capped off her decorated 2019 season by earning first team CoSIDA Academic All-America honors. She was one of just seven players across the nation selected to the first team, one of 21 total, and became the 14th student-athlete in Otterbein history (across any sport) to earn national honors for both athletics and academics in the same season.