Volleyball Opens 2001 Season at Home – Ohio State Buckeyes
8/28/2001 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Aug. 28, 2001
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COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio State women’s volleyball squad opens the 2001 season hosting the Buckeye Invitational. The round-robin tournament will open at 5 p.m., Friday, Aug. 31 with Ohio playing Tennessee Tech. Ohio State will host Illinois-Chicago at 7 p.m. Play opens at 11 a.m., Saturday, Sept. 1 with Ohio State hosting Tennessee Tech. Illinois-Chicago plays Ohio at 1 p.m. The evening session opens at 5 p.m. with Illinois-Chicago playing Tennessee Tech. At 7 p.m., Ohio State hosts Ohio. Ohio State then will travel to Dayton, Ohio, to face Wright State at 7 p.m., Tuesday, Sept. 4.
This Week in Ohio State Volleyball
2001 Buckeye Invitational
Aug. 31: Ohio vs. Tennessee Tech, 5 p.m. Ohio State vs. Illinois-Chicago, 7 pm. Sept. 1: Ohio State vs. Tennessee Tech, 11 a.m. Illinois-Chicago vs. Ohio, 1p.m. Illinois-Chicago vs. Tennessee Tech, 5 p.m. Ohio State vs. Ohio, 7 p.m.
Sept. 4 Ohio State at Wright State L. J. McLinn Gymnasium (500), Dayton, Ohio
LOOKING BACK AT THE 2000 SEASON
Ohio State finished the 2000 season with a 26-7 overall record and was fourth in the Big Ten Conference with a 14-6 mark. The Buckeyes started the season with 16 consecutive wins. OSU setter Katie Virtue (Jr., Wheaton, Ill/St. Francis) played seven matches with a stress fracture in her left foot before missing the next three matches to rest the injury. Virtue returned to the lineup the last weekend of the regular season to help the Buckeyes upset seventh-ranked Minnesota, 3-2, and earn OSU’s 12th consecutive NCAA appearance. Tournament wins over Ball State (3-1) and Notre Dame (3-2) advanced the Buckeyes to the Central Regional Semifinals in Lincoln, Neb., where the eventual national champions defeated Ohio State, 3-0. Postseason honors included Virtue being named All-Big Ten with Sue Calligaris and Suzie Stiling (Jr., Glenview, Ill./Glenbrook South) receiving honorable mention recognition. Virtue also was honored as a member of the American Volleyball Coaches Association Mideast All-Region squad.
BUCKEYE INVITATIONAL HISTORY
Ohio State won the 2000 Buckeye Invitational with wins over Toledo (3-1) and Illinois State (3-1). OSU’s Dana Stearns was named the most valuable player with Katie Virtue and Anne Botica (Sr., Windsor, Ont./St. Joseph) named to the all-tournament team. The Buckeyes have won eight of 11 Invitationals and 17 of their 24 home tournaments.
A LOOK AT ILLINOIS-CHICAGO
The Flames of coach Don August were 18-13 last season. They had a 6-6 record in the Midwestern Collegiate Conference, finishing fourth. Ohio State has a 4-3 lead in the series with Illinois-Chicago. Ohio State last faced the Flames in the 1989 Buckeye Invitational. The Buckeyes won 3-1 (15-1, 10-15, 15-1, 15-5).
A LOOK AT TENNESSEE TECH
The Golden Eagles of coach Jennie Gilbert were 11-15 last season. They had a 4-12 mark in the Ohio Valley Conference, finishing eighth. This will be the first meeting with the Golden Eagles. The match marks the return of Golden Eagle assistant coach Ernie Gilbert, who was an assistant coach for the Buckeyes from 1983 to 1987.
A LOOK AT OHIO
The Bobcats of coach Mike Lessinger were 20-11 last season. They had a 12-6 record in the Mid-American Conference and finished tied for first place in the East Division. Ohio State has a 12-0 record in the series with Ohio. The squads have not played since 1990, a 3-0 (15-5, 15-11, 15-6) Buckeye win in Columbus. Bobcat assistant coach Kirsten Jensen played four years (1992-95) at Ohio State.
A LOOK AT WRIGHT STATE
The Raiders of coach Joylynn Tracey were 11-17 last season. They had a 4-8 record in the Midwestern Collegiate Conference, finishing fifth. Ohio State leads the series with Wright State, 7-1. The last meeting was at Wright State in 1995. Ohio State won 3-0 (15-6, 15-8, 15-6).
NEWCOMERS JOIN THE BUCKEYES
Two additions have been made to the squad this summer. Freshman Trine Melsether (Aalesund, Norway/Fagerlia) and Tamika Drake (Euclid, Ohio/Euclid) joined the squad for preseason practice. Trine, a 6-1 outside hitter, played for the Aukra Club last season, winning the Junior Championships. Previously she played for Bindheim Club. Tamika, a 5-7 defensive specialist, played four years at Euclid High School as a middle hitter. She also played for the Leva Volleyball Club in Riverside-Painesville.
STILING AND VIRTUE COMPETE IN ITALY
Suzie Stiling and Katie Virtue participated in a week-long volleyball tournament during the first week of July. The Sibillini Tournament was held in Montemonaco, Italy. Stiling and Virtue played for VolleyHut.Com, an eight-player squad coach by Dietre Collins of Nevada-Las Vegas, finishing second in the tournament. Virtue, who was making her second appearance in the Tournament, won the best setter award for the second consecutive year.
DRAEGER TOURS WITH USA NATIONAL A2 TEAM
Shelly Draeger (Jr., Milwaukee, Wis./Wisconsin Lutheran) trained this past summer with the USA Women’s A2 Volleyball Team in preparation for a five-match tour in the Dominican Republic this past July. The 11-player squad coached by Iradge Ahrabi-Fard, head coach-retired, Northen Iowa, finished the tour with a 2-3 record.
BUCKEYES RANKED 16TH AND 17TH IN NATIONAL POLLS
In the opening national polls, Ohio State has been ranked 16th in the USA Today/AVCA Coaches Top 25 Preseason Poll. The Buckeyes finished the 2000 season ranked 15th. OSU was 17th in the Volleyball Magazine Poll. Ohio State was 16th in the final 2000 poll. NCAA defending national champion Nebraska is the top pick in both polls. Three other Big Ten teams are included in the USA/Today/AVCA poll. Penn State is ranked third, Wisconsin fourth and Minnesota 15th while Michigan and Michigan State each received votes. In the Volleyball Magazine poll, Wisconsin is seventh, Penn State eighth and Minnesota 15th. Michigan and Michigan State also are listed.
BUCKEYE HEAD COACH JIM STONE
Jim Stone enters his 20th season at Ohio State. He has a 424-188 (.683) record with the Buckeyes and is 242-105 (.697) in Big Ten play. His squads have won Big Ten Championships in 1989, 1991 and 1994 and in the last 12 years have only finished below third twice. In the championship years, he was named the Big Ten Coach of the Year and was the 1991 Volleyball Monthly National Coach of the Year. Under Stone, Ohio State has participated in the NCAA Championship the last 12 years, 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 474-230 (.673).
STONE, THE DEAN OF THE BIG TEN COACHES
Head coach Jim Stone begins his 20th year in the Big Ten at Ohio State. Closest to Stone is Mike Hebert of Minnesota who is entering his 19th season. He spent 14 years at Illinois and the last five at Minnesota.
TELEVISED MATCHES
Ohio State will appear in three of the 11 matches that are part of the Big Ten television package that will be broadcast by ESPN2 and Fox Sports Chicago. OSU will host Michigan State (Fri., Nov. 16) in one of three Big Ten matches on ESPN2 in a delayed broadcast. The match will be shown at 2 p.m. ET, Sunday, Nov. 18. The Buckeyes will host two of the eight matches to be broadcast by Fox Sports Chicago. OSU matches included are Minnesota (Saturday, Oct. 14) and Wisconsin (Friday, Oct. 26). The Minnesota match will be shown at 7 p.m. CT, Monday, Oct. 15 with the Wisconsin match shown at 3 p.m. CT, Sunday, Oct. 28.
This marks the seventh-consecutive season that the conference has had at least three matches on ESPN2 and the fifth-straight year that the Big Ten has allied with the Fox Sports Chicago network. The Fox Sports Chicago Big Ten volleyball broadcasts are annually seen in 18 million Midwest and Eastern homes, while ESPN2 reaches 71 million-plus viewers around the nation.
VOLLEYBALL RULE CHANGES
Several new playing rules will be in effect for the 2001 season. Match scoring will move from sideout to a rally-scoring format where each play results in a point. The first four games will be scored to 30 points. The fifth game will be played to 15 points. All games must still be won by two points.
The collegiate game will mimic the international game with the let serve. A serve ball will remain in play if it hits the net and continues its path to the opposition’s court.
The international pursuit, an experimental rule for 2001-2002, can be implemented in a match by agreement of both coaches. The rule allows for a player to retrieve a ball (on the second contact) that has crossed the plane of the net to the opponent’s free space, provided that player does not touch the opponent’s court and sends the ball back to their court, over or outside the antennas, for an opportunity for the third contact.
NEXT UP FOR THE BUCKEYES
Ohio State travels to Chicago, Ill., for the Loyola Adidas/Clairol Invitational. The Buckeyes play host Loyola at 7 p.m., Friday, Sept. 7 and face South Florida (Noon) and Evansville (5 p.m.) Saturday. OSU then plays at Cincinnati at 7 p.m., Tuesday, Sept. 11.
