Ohio’s sweep at the hands of Miami was their first straight-sets loss at The Convo this season since the end of August, but that wasn’t what Ohio was focused on.
The Bobcats were focused on what potentially could happen in two weeks.
In two weeks, Ohio (13-12, 9-4 MAC) and Miami (21-4, 13-0 MAC) could face-off in the Mid-American Conference tournament with the RedHawks likely being the top seed.
For the Bobcats, who have won seven of their last 10, Friday’s loss was a look at what the RedHawks could look like in the tournament.
And for Ohio, they seemed to struggle mentally, committing too many unforced errors. It committed 18 errors on the night and hit at a 0.175 clip.
“We didn’t come out in the start very well tonight,” senior Brooke Coleman said. “I think we need to be mentally stronger, especially going into the MAC tournament.”
Coleman, a setter, ended the night with 11 digs.
But for Miami, they proved their dominance as the best team in the MAC.
The RedHawks hit at a 0.312 hitting percentage with seven total blocks at the night on Friday.
“They played a credit match,” coach Deane Webb said. “That’s as good as a match as they’ve had all year. They’re in the midst of having a great season and they continued that tonight.”
Miami won their 20th straight match on Friday. They haven’t lost a set in three weeks.
As Webb looks forward to the tournament in two weeks, he looks at the positives in Friday’s loss. After losing 25-14 in the first set, the Bobcats made it competitive in the second and third sets, losing by just four points in back-to-back sets.
The Bobcats had their best hitting percentage in the third set, hitting at a 0.267 clip.
But the second and third sets gave Ohio confidence looking forward, Webb said.
“I think if the whole match would’ve went like the first set, our belief would’ve been crippled,” he said. “As much as it’s frustrating to take a loss, it’s not necessarily negative overall. Some improvements were made, but we need to make a little more.”
