After a rough start to the season, Ohio appears to have found its stride after sweeping Buffalo for its first road victories of the year. Ohio won 3-1 on Friday and 3-0 on Saturday.
Here’s how the Bobcats performed:
Friday
Ohio (4-15, 4-4 Mid-American Conference) came out fast with a blowout in set one to take a lead it would never give up. The second set was the closest of the day. It saw the Bobcats rally with their backs against the wall down 21-19 and then 25-24 to win the set 27-25 in a nail-biter.
Buffalo (9-12, 2-7 MAC) won its only set of the weekend in set three. Afterward, to match the theme of the rest of the night, the Bobcats used a hot 13-3 start with five blocks to finish the match with a convincing 25-14 win in the fourth set.
Ohio’s attackers were led by Maggie Nedoma with 17 kills and Caroline Clippard with 14. Tria McLean performed well with 48 assists and matched her season-high three service aces. Sam Steele had a strong night on the defensive front and also recorded three service aces.
The Bobcats were as dominant on paper as they looked on the court. Ohio led in points, kills, digs, assists and blocks. The Bobcats’ serving was particularly noteworthy. They led the way with seven service aces, two of which came down the stretch of the crucial second set. Ohio also set a season-low for service errors with only three on Friday night.
Saturday
As good as Ohio was in the first match, it surpassed that performance on Saturday. The first set was the closest of the night. With the set tied at 18, the Bobcats finished on a 7-3 run to take set one 25-21.
Clippard was crucial for the Bobcats on the attack front with 13 kills in the first two sets. The Bobcats intertwined a strong attack and defense to win set two, as Elizabeth Hoerlein was part of four blocks in the second set alone. The Bobcats once again used a hot start to finish the match in set three. This time, the Bobcats started 12-3 with Caitlin O’Farrell helping close the match with three kills and being part of two blocks in the third set.
Clippard finished with 16 kills to lead the Bobcats, and Nedoma once again had a strong match with 10 kills. Hoerlein finished with six blocks, and McLean had another strong night with 41 assists.
It was another great match for the Bobcats statistically, as they led in points, kills, digs, assists, service aces and blocks. The Bobcats not only swept the match but also ran away with the final two sets and allowed 31 points in the final two sets combined.
