No. 11 Women’s Volleyball Faces No. 8 Minnesota and Iowa – Ohio State Buckeyes
10/10/2000 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Oct. 10, 2000
COLUMBUS, Ohio – %^$Ohio State (16-0, 6-0 Big Ten) returns to the road to face No. 8 Minnesota (16-1, 5-1) Friday and Iowa (8-6, 4-2) Saturday. The Saturday match will be carried by Fox Sports-Chicago at 5 p.m. eastern Sunday. Ohio State remained undefeated last week with 3-0 wins over Purdue (15-13, 15-7, 15-12) and Illinois (15-8, 15-5, 15-10). With Wisconsin’s win at Minnesota Friday, OSU now holds first place alone. Minnesota and Wisconsin tied for second.%^$
%^$OSU RANKS 11TH AND 7TH
%^$Ohio State is ranked 11th in the USA TODAY/AVCA Top 25 Poll for the second week. The Buckeyes moved to No. 7 in the Volleyball Magazine Poll this week after holding the No. 8 spot last week.%^$
%^$LOOKING AT THE BUCKEYES
%^$Offensively Ohio State is showing great balance in the offense with five players averaging 3.16 or more kills per game. Dana Stearns (Sr., Bexley, Ohio/Bexley) has a team-high 197 kills (3.72 per game) with Shelly Draeger (So., Milwaukee, Wis./Wisconsin Lutheran) second with 179 kills (3.31) and Anne Botica (Jr., Windsor, Ont./St. Joseph) third with 167 (3.27). Suzie Stiling (So., Glenview, Ill./Glenbrook South) has 174 (3.16) and Sue Calligaris (So., Palermo, Italy/Liceo Linguistico) has 176 kills (3.20). Stearns is the squad’s top percentage hitter at .413 with Calligaris second at .383. Katie Virtue (So., St. Charles, Ill./St. Francis) quarterbacks the team and is averaging 14.25 assists per game (784). Botica is the team leader in ace serves with 27 (.53) with Virtue second with 20 (.36). Defensively Botica leads the team with 151 digs (2.96), one of five players who average two or more digs per game. Stearns is second with 142 (2.68) and Virtue third with 128 (2.33). Calligaris has 130 digs (2.36) and Draeger has 114 (2.11). At the net, Stearns leads the team with 60 (4 solo, 56 assists) blocks (1.13) and Stiling is second with 56 (2-54) (1.02).%^$
%^$As a team, Ohio State is hitting .278 and averages 18.07 kills per game. The Buckeyes are averaging 2.62 blocks, 15.69 digs and 1.76 aces per game. OSU opponents are hitting .143 and average 13.18 kills per game. Opponents average 2.29 blocks, 12.60 digs and 1.15 aces per game.%^$
%^$16-0
%^$OSU’s 16-0 start this season is the best start for the Buckeyes in the history of the program. In 1996 OSU started the season at 11-0.%^$
%^$6-0 BIG TEN START
%^$A 6-0 Big Ten start has not happened for OSU since 1993 when the Buckeyes won its first six Big Ten contests. Ohio State has won its first six or more league contests two times. The other season was 1991 with 20 wins.%^$
%^$3-0 AGAINST RANKED TEAMS
%^$With wins over No. 17 Michigan State, No. 21 Michigan and No. 10 Wisconsin, 19th-ranked Ohio State stands 3-0 against ranked teams this season.%^$
%^$AN EXPLOSIVE WEEKEND
%^$Ohio State picked up 3-0 wins over Purdue and Illinois last weekend. The Buckeye offense was in high gear averaging 22 kills per game for the six games. The Buckeye opponents averaged only 14.67 kills per game. Defensively the Buckeyes averaged 19 digs per game on the weekend to its opponents 13.33. The Buckeyes had a combined hitting percentage of .319 for the two matches while the opponents hit .154.%^$
%^$BALANCE IN KILLS
%^$Ohio State has five players averaging 3.17 kills per game or more. Dana Stearns tops the team at 3.72 kills per game. Following her are Shelly Draeger at 3.31, Anne Botica at 3.27, Suzie Stiling at 3.20 and Sue Calligaris at 3.16.%^$
%^$BALANCE IN DIGS
%^$The Buckeyes also have five players averaging 2.11 digs per game or more. Anne Botica is the team leader averaging 2.96 kills per game. Following her are Dana Stearns at 2.68, Sue Calligaris at 2.36, Katie Virtue at 2.33 and Shelly Draeger at 2.11. Defensive specialist Nikki Cisco averages 1.98 digs per game.%^$
%^$HOLD THE HITTING PERCENTAGE
%^$Ohio State opponents are averaging .143 hitting for the 16 matches played. Only four opponents have hit over .200 against the Buckeyes. These include at Temple (.209), at Marshall (.273), Illinois State (.212) and at Wisconsin (.208). Five opponents have hit less than .100 including a -.021 at Northwestern. In six Big Ten matches, OSU opponents are hitting .142.%^$
%^$STILING SPARKLES
%^$For Suzie Stiling, it was a great weekend of volleyball. Friday against Purdue she equaled her career-high of 16 kills against the Boilermakers and hit a career-high .577 (16-1-26). She also had five assist blocks and four digs. Stiling came back Saturday against Illinois with 10 kills and improved her career-high hitting percentage to .615 (10-2-13). She also picked up three assist blocks and one digs against the Illini. Stiling has had five-consecutive matches with double-figure kills and has collected five or more blocks in six of the last seven matches.%^$
%^$STEARNS SHOW CONSISTENCY
%^$The senior starter Dana Stearns showed her consistency last weekend against Purdue and Illinois. Against the Boilermakers, she had 15 kills and hit .429 (14-3-28). Stearns added seven digs, five blocks (one solo, four assists) and an ace serve in the match. Against the Illini Stearns had 13 kills and hit .425 (13-3-23). She added seven digs, three assist blocks and a season-high three ace serves. Stearns is the team leader in kills with 197 (3.72 per game) and blocks with 60 (1.13). She is second in digs with 142 (2.68). She has had double-figure kills in six of the last seven matches.%^$
%^$BOTICA HAS SEASON HIGH
%^$With a .452 hitting percentage against Illinois, Anne Botica set a new season high. She had a match-high 17 kills with only three errors in 31 attempts. Botica added four digs and one assist block in the match. Against Purdue, Botica had eight kills with 13 digs, one ace and one assist block. Overall Botica ranks third on the team in kills with 167 (3.27) and is the team leader in digs with 151 (2.96).%^$
%^$SEASON HIGH FOR CISCO
%^$With 11 digs against Purdue, Nikki Cisco set a season high. She came back against Illinois and added 10 more. Cisco has had 10 or more digs in five of the last eight matches.%^$
%^$DRAEGER FINDS HER TOUCH
%^$With 11 kills and the same number of errors in 32 attempts against Purdue, Shelly Draeger hit .000 for the match. She added 10 digs, an ace serve and two blocks (one solo and one assist). The next night Draeger responded with a .320 hitting percentage on 12 kills with four errors in 25 attempts. She added six digs and three assist blocks.%^$
%^$CALLIGARIS ADJUSTS TO POSITION CHANGE
%^$Listed as a middle hitter in the media guide, Sue Calligaris found herself at outside hitter for the beginning of the Big Ten season. The move has proved to be beneficial to the Buckeyes. Last week she had 14 kills and hit .310 (14-5-29) against Purdue adding 13 digs, three assist blocks and one ace serve. Saturday she had eight kills and hit .500 (8-1-14) against Illinois. Calligaris added eight digs and one assist block in the match. In six Big Ten matches Calligaris has 86 kills (3.91) and is tied for the team lead with Anne Botica. She is hitting .361 in conference play and is averaging 2.73 digs and .59 blocks per game. With her 14 kills and 13 digs against Purdue, Calligaris now has four double-doubles this season.%^$
%^$VIRTUE RUNNING THE FAST OFFENSE
%^$A big reason for the Buckeye’s 16-0 start is Katie Virtue. She directs a fast-paced offense that is averaging 18.07 kills per game. Last week the Buckeyes were ranked sixth in the country for kills per game at 17.59. Virtue is averaging 14.25 assists per game on the season and was ranked 10th in the country last week with a 13.84 average. The Buckeye offense shows five starters with 3.16 or more kills per game on the season. Virtue’s attempt distribution has the five starters with between 345 and 461 attempts on the season. Last week she had 57 assists, five kills, 12 digs and two assist blocks against Purdue and added 49 assists, six digs and one assist blocks against Illinois. Virtue also is helping the cause with 128 digs (2.33).%^$
%^$DIV. I NATIONAL STATISTICS
%^$In the NCAA national statistics release Oct. 4, Dana Stearns was ranked 17th in hitting percentage at .396 and Katie Virtue was ranked 10th in assists at 13.84. In team statistics, the Buckeyes are sixth in kills at 17.59 and ranked 15th in assists at 15.61.%^$
%^$TELEVISION COVERAGE
%^$Ten Ohio State matches are scheduled to be telecast this season. The Buckeyes are scheduled for six matches on the Ohio News Network. The matches are part of a 30-plus event package between Ohio State and ONN. The following matches comprise the volleyball package (broadcast times subject to change): at Marshall, Sept. 5 (replay Sept. 6, 11:30 p.m.), Toledo Sept. 9 (live), OSU’s match Sept. 10 (live), Cincinnati Sept. 12 (Sept. 12, 11:30 p.m.), Michigan Sept. 24 (live), Illinois Oct. 7 (Oct. 8, 1 p.m.), and Wisconsin Nov. 5 (Nov. 5, 11 p.m.). Ohio State has one of three Big Ten matches to be aired by ESPN2. OSU will host Indiana Oct. 21 with broadcast Oct. 22 at 3:30 p.m. The Buckeyes will appear in two of the eight Big Ten matches to be carried by Fox Sports Chicago. OSU’s match at Iowa Oct. 14 will be broadcast at 4 p.m. Oct. 15 and the Buckeye contest at Penn State Nov. 18 will be broadcast at 4 p.m. Nov. 19.%^$
%^$LOOKING AT MINNESOTA
%^$The Gophers are 16-1 overall and 5-1 in the Big Ten. They are currently tied for second place with Wisconsin. Minnesota had a 15-match winning streak ended by Wisconsin 3-0 (15-13, 15-1, 15-13) last Friday in Minneapolis. The Gophers responded Saturday with a 3-0 (15-8, 15-3, 15-7) win over Northwestern.%^$
%^$Ohio State leads the series 24-19. The Gophers have a two-match winning streak winning 3-2 (15-5, 15-10, 11-15, 13-15, 15-9) in Columbus and 3-1 (15-4, 15-5, 3-15, 15-9) in Minneapolis. Minnesota has won four of the last six matches and has a four-match winning streak at home. Ohio State last won in Minneapolis in 1995.%^$
%^$LOOKING AT IOWA
%^$The Hawkeyes are 8-6 overall and 4-2 in the Big Ten. They are currently tied for fourth place in the conference with Michigan State. Iowa defeated Northwestern 3-1 (15-8, 13-15, 15-7, 15-3) Friday and lost to Wisconsin 0-3 (7-15, 8-15, 15-17) Saturday.%^$
%^$Ohio State leads the series 35-4. The Buckeyes have 24-consecutive wins over the Hawkeyes including 12 straight wins in Iowa City. Iowa last won at home over Ohio State in 1987. Last season Ohio State defeated Iowa 3-0 (15-5, 15-1, 15-4) in Columbus and 3-0 (15-6, 15-11, 15-6) in Iowa City.%^$
%^$HEAD COACH JIM STONE
%^$Jim Stone is in his 19th year at Ohio State. He has a 412-181 (.695) record with the Buckeyes and is 232-99 (.701) in Big Ten play. His squads have won Big Ten championships in 1989, 1991 and 1994 and in the last 11 years has only finished below third twice. In the championship years, he was named the Big Ten Coach of the Year and in 1991 was the Volleyball Monthly Coach of the Year. For the last 11 years, OSU has participated in the NCAA Championships, advancing to the national semifinals in 1991 and 1994. Stone’s coaching career record includes three years at Wyoming (1979-1981). His 22-year career record is 462-223 (.674).%^$
%^$THE DEAN OF THE BIG TEN COACHES
%^$Head coach Jim Stone begins his 19th-year in the Big Ten at Ohio State. Closest to Stone is Mike Hebert of Minnesota who is entering his 18th season. He spent 14 years at Illinois and the last four at Minnesota.%^$
%^$NEXT UP FOR THE BUCKEYES
%^$Ohio State returns home to face Penn State Friday, Oct. 20 and Indiana Saturday, Oct. 21. The match with Indiana will be delayed telecast by ESPN2 at 3:30 p.m. eastern Sunday.%^$
%^$#10 ANGELEE ABBRING
%^$Saw action against Liberty recording one kill.%^$
%^$#4 ERIN BAKER
%^$Played against Liberty.%^$
%^$#8 ANNE BOTICA
%^$Named to the Ameritech and Buckeye Invitational All-Tournament Teams. Career-highs of 27 kills and 28 digs in upset win at Wisconsin. Career-high seven aces (ties OSU match record) against Illinois State. Season-high .452 (17-3-31) against Illinois.%^$
%^$#12 SUE CALLIGARIS
%^$Named to the All-Tournament Team of the Temple Volleyball Classic. Career-high 21 kills against Michigan State. Had a season-high 14 digs against the Spartans. Has four double-doubles (kills-digs) including at Marshall (13-10), Michigan State (21-14), at Wisconsin (20-13) and Purdue (14-13). Hit a career-high .550 (13-2-20) in that match. Equaled her career-high of six assist blocks in the Temple and Toledo matches. Traveled to London and Germany during the summer.%^$
%^$#11 NIKKI CISCO
%^$Back row defensive specialist. Season-high 11 against Purdue. Had 10 digs against Liberty, Michigan and Wisconsin. Double-figure digs in four of the last five matches. Her team finished second out of 192 in a mud volleyball tournament for epilepsy during the summer.%^$
%^$#15 SHELLY DRAEGER
%^$Career-high 20 kills against Toledo. Hit a season-high .400 (11-3-20) at Marshall. Career-high 16-digs at Wisconsin. Five double-double (kills-digs) matches this season (Seton Hall 12-10, Cincinnati 13-10, Connecticut 11-12, at Wisconsin 12-16, Purdue 11-10). Equaled her career-high of four blocks against Michigan.%^$
%^$#7 DANA STEARNS
%^$Named to the Ameritech Invitational All-Tournament Team. Named the Most Valuable Player of the Buckeye Invitational. Season-high 20 kills against Connecticut. Tied her career-high of 19 digs at Wisconsin. Double-figure kills in 12 of the last 14 matches. Has had double-figure digs in seven of the last 11 matches. Equaled her career-high of nine assist blocks against Temple. Tenth in OSU career kills with 1,157. Needs 55 to pass No. 9 Tricia Stragliotto (1993-95) with 1,211. Fourth in OSU career assist blocks with 330. Needs 31 to pass No. 2Sherri Helman (1993-96) with 360. Fifth in OSU career total blocks with 357. Needs 29 to pass No. 4 Leisa Wissler (1988-91) and Sherri Rinker (1984-87) with 385.%^$
%^$#9 SUZIE STILING
%^$Hit a career-high .615 (10-2-13) against Illinois. Career-high three ace serves against Colgate and at Marshall. Season-high seven digs against Seton Hall. Tied career-high of 16 kills against Purdue for the third time. Double-figure kills in 12 of the last 14 matches. Season-high seven blocks (1-6) against Michigan and at Northwestern (0-7). Ranks 20th in career block assists with 133. Needs nine blocks to pass No. 19 Tricia Stragliotto (1992-95) with 141. Had her first experience with coaching during the summer.%^$
%^$#13 ERIN TREADWAY
%^$Hit a career-high .700 (8-1-10) against Illinois State coming off the bench in the last two games. Did not play against Colgate because of illness. Started against Temple and had a season-high 11 kills in the match. Had six kills off the bench in the win against Wisconsin, keying wins in game four and five. Was an assistant coach for the Fair Valley Country Club’s swim team during the summer. The team placed second overall in the Greater Dayton Swimming Association Championships. Her aunt Janis Browning (Janis Reichert) played volleyball for Ohio State, lettering in 1975-76.%^$
%^$#3 KATIE VIRTUE
%^$Most Valuable Player of the Temple Volleyball Classic and the Ameritech Invitational. Named to the Buckeye Invitational All-Tournament Team. Career-high 83 assists in win at Wisconsin. Equaled her career-high of six kills against Toledo as she hit a season-high .857 (6-0-7). Season-high 16 digs against Michigan. Cut her right knee (four stitches) hitting scoring table at Marshall. Preseason All-Big Ten selection. Had a season-high four assist blocks three times this year. Career-high two solo blocks against Michigan. Ranks sixth in career assists with 2,154. Needs 468 to pass No. 5 Marlene O’Brien (1983-86) with 2,621. Played during the summer for the USA under-20 team in an international tournament in Italy where they beat Yugoslavia for the gold.%^$
%^$#6 HEATHER WHALEN
%^$Saw her first action as backrow specialist at Marshall. Came in at setter for the injured Katie Virtue in the third game collecting 17 assists. Went white-water rafting in California during the summer.%^$
%^$TEAM NOTES
%^$Ohio State’s season-high .455 (48-8-88) hitting percentage against Liberty ranks as the 11th best mark in the history of OSU volleyball. The Buckeyes have reached double-figure aces in two matches this season (Colgate 11, Illinois State 12). Double-figure blocks have been reached in seven matches (Temple 15, Toledo 14.5, Michigan 14, Western Michigan 11, Michigan State 10, Northwestern 12, Purdue 11). OSU had a season-high 108 digs against Wisconsin. Defensively, Ohio State has had five opponents hit under .100 (Colgate .038, Seton Hall .080, Liberty .025, Western Michigan .032, Northwestern -.021). Marshall holds the best opponent hitting percentage at .273.%^$
%^$
%^$BIG TEN STANDINGS%^$(as of Oct. 8) Conf. Pct. All Pct.%^$1 Ohio State 6-0 1.000 16-0 1.000%^$2 Minnesota 5-1 .833 16-1 .941%^$ Wisconsin 5-1 .833 15-2 .882%^$4 Michigan State 4-2 .667 11-4 .733%^$ Iowa 4-2 .667 8-6 .571%^$6 Penn State 3-3 .500 14-4 .778%^$7 Michigan 2-4 .333 11-5 .688%^$8 Indiana 1-5 .167 10-6 .625%^$ Illinois 1-5 .167 10-7 .588%^$ Purdue 1-5 .167 9-9 .500%^$ Northwestern 1-5 .167 4-12 .250%^$
%^$
%^$UPCOMING SCHEDULE%^$October%^$11 Iowa at Minnesota%^$13 Illinois at Indiana%^$ Michigan at Northwestern%^$ Michigan State at Wisconsin%^$ Ohio State at Minnesota%^$ Purdue at Penn State%^$14 Illinois at Penn State%^$ Purdue at Indiana%^$ Ohio State at Iowa%^$ Michigan at Wisconsin%^$ Michigan State at Northwestern%^$
%^$
%^$BIG TEN STATISTICS%^$Team (Conference matches)%^$
%^$Hitting Pct. %^$ 1 MINN .274%^$ 4 OSU .261%^$ 7 IOWA .224%^$
%^$Kills%^$ 1 WIS 19.10%^$ 2 MINN 19.05%^$ 3 OSU 18.50%^$ 7 IOWA 16.13%^$
%^$Assists%^$ 1 MINN 17.53%^$ 3 OSU 16.09%^$ 6 IOWA 14.87%^$
%^$Service Aces%^$ 1 ILL 1.78%^$ 2 IOWA 1.70%^$ 3 MINN 1.37%^$ 7 OSU 1.23%^$
%^$Digs%^$ 1 WIS 20.10%^$ 2 MINN 18.05%^$ 3 OSU 17.68%^$ 5 IOWA 15.78%^$
%^$Blocks%^$ 1 WIS 3.40%^$ 4 MINN 3.03%^$ 5 OSU 2.82%^$ 6 IOWA 2.70%^$
%^$Individual (Conference matches)%^$Hitting Percentage%^$ 1 Stephanie Hagen, MINN .443%^$ 3 Dana Stearns, OSU .386%^$ 4 Charnette Fair, MINN .370%^$ 6 Sue Calligaris, OSU .361%^$ 8 Suzie Stiling, OSU .344%^$10 Katie Panhorst, IOWA .319%^$
%^$Kills%^$ 1 Sherisa Livingston, WIS 6.15%^$ 2 Nicole Branagh, MINN 5.47%^$ 3 Stephanie Hagen, MINN 5.16%^$ 6 Sara Meyermann, IOWA 4.17%^$
%^$Assists%^$ 1 Lindsey Berg, MINN 15.79%^$ 3 Katie Virtue, OSU 15.00%^$ 7 Fabiana de Abreu, IOWA 11.78%^$
%^$Service Aces%^$ 1 Lindsay Berg, MINN .53%^$ 4 Ornelas Evelena, IOWA .44%^$ 5 Fabiana De Abreu, IOWA .43%^$
%^$Digs%^$ 1 Nicole Kacor, MICH 3.85%^$ 2 Yvonne VanOort, MINN 3.74%^$ 4 Anne Botica, OSU 3.64%^$ 6 Lindsey Berg, MINN 3.37%^$ 8 Nicole Branagh, MINN 3.32%^$10 Renee Hill, IOWA 3.26%^$
%^$Blocks%^$ 1 Robyn Guikas, PSU 1.86%^$ 2 Suzie Stiling, OSU 1.50%^$ 3 Stephanie Hagen, MINN 1.47%^$ 5 Katie Panhorst, IOWA 1.39%^$
%^$
%^$USA TODAY/AVCA Coaches Poll%^$Oct. 9, 2000 – Poll #6%^$Rk School Total 2000 Last%^$ (First-Place Votes) Points Record Week%^$ 1 Nebraska (49) 1,489 15-0 1%^$ 2 Hawai’i (10) 1,447 14-0 2%^$ 3 Colorado State 1,369 18-1 3%^$ 4 Southern California (1) 1,334 13-0 4%^$ 5 Pepperdine 1,240 13-2 6%^$ 6 Arizona 1,192 14-1 7%^$ 7 Wisconsin 1,061 15-2 10%^$ 8 Minnesota 1,055 16-1 5%^$ 9 Florida 993 13-3 9%^$10 UCLA 973 10-5 8%^$11 Ohio State 960 16-0 11%^$12 Penn State 788 14-4 12%^$13 Pacific 783 13-3 14%^$14 UC Santa Barbara 707 11-4 15%^$15 Utah 694 13-2 16%^$16 Santa Clara 580 14-1 17%^$17 Brigham Young 565 11-5 13%^$18 Long Beach State 521 11-4 18%^$19 Michigan State 366 11-4 19%^$20 Notre Dame 340 13-4 20%^$21 Stanford 271 9-6 21%^$22 Texas A&M 223 10-4 23%^$23 Loyola Marymount 197 12-5 22%^$24 Missouri 90 14-2 NR%^$25 Utah State 74 12-5 25%^$Others receiving 30 or more points:%^$Texas Tech (69), North Carolina (33).%^$
%^$
%^$Volleyball Magazine Top 20 Poll%^$
%^$Oct. 9, 2000/Poll #7%^$ 2000 Last%^$Rk School Record Week%^$ 1 Southern California 13-0 1%^$ 2 Hawai’i 14-0 2%^$ 3 Nebraska 15-0 3%^$ 4 Colorado State 18-1 4%^$ 5 Arizona 14-1 6%^$ 6 Pepperdine 13-2 7%^$ 7 Ohio State 16-0 8%^$ 8 Wisconsin 15-2 9%^$ 9 Minnesota 16-1 5%^$10 Penn State 14-4 10%^$11 Pacific 13-3 12%^$12 Florida 13-3 13%^$13 UCLA 10-5 14%^$14 Long Beach State 11-4 15%^$15 UC Santa Barbara 11-4 16%^$16 Utah 13-2 17%^$17 Santa Clara 15-1 18%^$18 Brigham Young 11-5 11%^$19 Stanford 9-6 19%^$20 Texas Tech 16-1 NR%^$Others: Utah State, Notre Dame, Michigan State,%^$Kansas State, Loyola Marymount, North Carolina,%^$Baylor, Michigan, Arizona State, Cal Poly
