Much like the Ohio football team, the Ohio volleyball squad also faced a short week and a limited amount of preparation time, but both finished Thursday with Mid-American Conference victories.
The Bobcats extended their winning streak to 12 matches with a straight-set win at Kent State to begin their four-match road trip. However, Ohio was challenged in both the first and third sets by Kent State, as less than three points decided both.
“Although we won 3-0, it was not easy,” said Ohio coach Ryan Theis. “Kent did well defensively and so did we. If it was a football game, it would’ve been a 7-6 game.”
To begin the match, the Golden Flashes jumped ahead to a 10-6 lead, but the Bobcats remained in contention, as the set was tied at 11 different points.
After the set was tied at 22, Ohio went on a three-point run to clinch and take a 1-0 lead, following a kill by sophomore outside hitter Kelly Lamberti and two attack errors from Kent State.
Following the back-and-forth first set, Ohio cruised past Kent State in the second set with a 25-13 win. The Golden Flashes scored the first point of the set, but did not lead past the opening point.
The third was much like the first, though, as the match was a catfight until the finish. The two teams were deadlocked at 23, despite Ohio previously holding a 20-16 lead.
But the Bobcats were able to once again score the final points of the set and clinch the season-sweep of the Golden Flashes, who did not win a set against Ohio in either match.
Lamberti led Ohio offensively, recording a double-double of 19 kills and 14 digs, as she also scored 20 points. She was the only Bobcat to record double-digit kills and points.
“Kelly played like she wanted the ball and when she got the ball she was able to score points for us with it,” Theis said. “Which was good, since it came on a night where our offense wasn’t hot.”
Ohio will be back in action Saturday at Central Michigan, as the Chippewas are the only MAC team that has yet to play the Bobcats.
The Chippewas (12-12, 6-7 MAC) are in the midst of a six-match losing streak after losing to Eastern Michigan on Thursday 3-0.
Despite recent struggles in conference play, the Central Michigan offense ranks third-best in the MAC ranks for both kills and assists per set.
Leading the team in kills is Kaitlyn McIntyre, who has totaled more than 300 kills and is the lone Chippewa who notches at least three per set, while Kelly Maxwell leads the team in assists with an average of 11 per set.
Ohio defeated Central Michigan in the regular season last year 3-2, but then fell to the Chippewas in the MAC tournament, when the Bobcats’ postseason run was ended after the 3-0 sweep.
“(Central Michigan) is the last team we have yet to play, but they have a great upside as a team and we saw that at the end of last season,” Theis said. “They are struggling right now, but they have a switch and when it’s on they can be deadly.”
cl027410@ohiou.edu
