Volleyball Hosts Indiana Wednesday and No. 13 Penn State Friday – Ohio State Buckeyes
11/12/2002 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
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COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio State (13-9 overall, 7-7 Big Ten) women’s volleyball team completes a two-week, four-match home stand this week. OSU hosts Indiana (18-8, 8-6) Wed., Nov. 13 and close out the home stand with No. 13 Penn State (20-5, 10-4) Fri., Nov. 9. Both matches begin play at 7 p.m.
STACEY GORDON NAMED BIG TEN PLAYER OF THE WEEK
The Big Ten Conference has named outside hitter Stacey Gordon (So., Oshawa, Ontario) the Big Ten Player of the Week for her play in home victories against Michigan and Michigan State. In the win against Michigan, Gordon produced a match-high 32 kills, hit .367 and added a match-high 15 digs. The 32-kills is the third time this season she has had 30 or more kills and the fourth time in her career. In the victory over Michigan State, Gordon recorded a match-high 21-kills, hit .333, adding 11 digs, three ace serves and two assist blocks. For the two matches, she averaged 6.62 kills and 3.25 digs per game. Gordon hit .352 for the matches and added three ace serves and two assist blocks.
This marks the third time this season that Gordon has been honored as the Big Ten Player of the Week. She received back-to-back honors in early October, first in losses to Michigan State (2-3) and Michigan (0-3) on the road and then was Co-Player of the Week in a loss to Wisconsin (1-3) and in the win against Northwestern (3-0) in home matches. In her freshman season, Gordon was named Big Ten Player of the Week three times.
BUCKEYES MOVING UP CONFERENCE STANDINGS
After a 0-5 start in the Big Ten Conference standings, Ohio State has won seven of the last nine matches and currently is in a three-way tie for sixth in the league standings. One of the biggest differences for the Buckeyes was the return of several student-athletes from earlier injuries. Most notable was the return of setter Katie Virtue (Sr., St. Charles, Ill.) from a hand injury. Since the first five league matches the Buckeyes have improved statistically. OSU hit .198 in the first five matches and .235 in the last nine. OSU improved from 14.81 kills per game to 16.29 since the first five league contests.
A LOOK AT OHIO STATE
The Buckeyes, coached by Jim Stone, are 13-10 overall and 7-7 in Big Ten play. Ohio State reached .500 (7-7) in the Big Ten with 3-1 home wins over Michigan (28-30, 30-20, 30-20, 30-28) and Michigan State (30-25, 29-31, 30-17, 30-18). Stacey Gordon leads Ohio State with a 5.85 kills (532) and a 3.42 digs (311) per game average. Suzie Stiling (Sr., Glenview, Ill.) ranks second in kills at 2.80 (255) and is the leader in blocks per game at .96 (13 solos, 74 assists). Shelly Draeger (Sr., Milwaukee, Wis.) is third in kills at 2.66 (242). Freshman Stephanie Higgins (Fr., Biggsville, Ill.) is second on the team in blocks with a .94 per game average (three solos, 82 assists). Katie Virtue is the team leader with a 13.25 assist (795) per game average. Jackie Schardt (Fr., Colorado Springs, Colo.) is second with a 7.63 (229) average. Gordon has a team-high 32 ace serves for a .35 per game average with Stiling second with 24 aces (.26) each. Ohio State averages 15.57 kills per game and is hitting .223. The Buckeyes average 1.41 aces, 13.51 digs and 2.15 blocks per game. OSU opponents average 13.22 kills per game and are hitting .198. Buckeye opponents average 1.24 aces, 12.13 digs and 2.92 blocks per game.
A LOOK AT INDIANA
The Hoosiers, coached by Katie Weismiller, are 18-8 overall and 8-6 in the conference, currently in a two-way tie for fourth place. Christina Archibald is the team leader in kills (454) per game at 4.41. Melissa Brewer ranks second at 3.75 (386). Victoria Zimmerman runs the offense and averages 13.74 assists (1,415) per game. Archibald leads the team in aces (37) per game at .36. Defensively, Hillary Toivonen leads the team in digs (326) per game at 3.17. At the net, Katie Pollom is the top blocker on the squad with a 1.10 blocks per game average on 12 solo and 113 assists. Melissa Brewer ranks second at 1.02 per game with nine solos and 96 assists. Indiana averages 16.35 kills per game and is hitting .245. The Hoosiers average 1.43 aces, 13.93 digs and 2.33 blocks per game. Indiana opponents average 14.06 kills per game and are hitting .216. Hoosier opponents average 1.04 aces, 13.08 digs and 2.35 blocks per game.
OHIO STATE – INDIANA SERIES
Ohio State leads the series with Indiana, 30-21. The Hoosiers defeated Ohio State earlier this season in Bloomington 3-1 (30-28, 30-26, 29-31, 30-21). The Buckeyes won both conference matches last season, winning 3-0 (30-22, 30-20, 30-27) in Columbus and 3-0 (30-27, 20-12, 30-14) in Bloomington. Ohio State is 17-6 in matches played in Columbus, 9-13 in Bloomington, and 4-2 on neutral sites.
A LOOK AT PENN STATE
The 13-th ranked Nittany Lions, coached by Russ Rose, are 20-5 overall and 10-4 in Big Ten play. Penn State is second in the conference standings. Mishka Levy is the team leader in kills (325) per game at 3.78 with Cara Smith ranked second at 3.10 (267). Sam Tortorello runs the offense and has a 12.12 assists (982) per game average. Tortorello (28) and Amy Morris (16) are tied for the team lead in aces per game at .35. Smith is third in aces (26) at .30. Defensively, Syndie Nadeau leads the team in digs (191) at 2.39 per game with Tortorello second at 2.04 (165). At the net, Robyn Guokas is the team leader in blocking at 1.46 per game with 16 solos and 108 assists. Second is Levy at 1.33 (10-104) and Smith is third at 1.16 (17-83). Penn State averages 15.93 kills per game and is hitting .304. The Nittany Lions average 1.98 aces, 13.66 digs and 3.26 blocks per game. Penn State opponents average 13.28 kills per game and are hitting .157. PSU opponents average 1.06 aces, 12.94 digs and 1.75 blocks per game.
OHIO STATE – PENN STATE SERIES
Penn State leads the series with Ohio State, 22-11. Earlier this season Ohio State lost 3-2 (23-30, 22-30, 30-26, 30-20, 15-9) at Penn State. The Buckeyes won both conference contests last year. OSU won 3-2 (30-24, 28-30, 38-20, 31-29, 15-12) in Columbus and won 3-0 (30-19, 30-23, 30-19) in University Park. The Nittany Lions have won nine of 15 matches played in Columbus, 11 of 15 in University Park, and two of three on neutral courts. Since 1991 in Big Ten Conference action, the Nittany Lions have a 13-10 lead in league contests.
GORDON REACHES 1,000 KILLS AS A SOPHOMORE
With eight kills against Michigan, Stacey Gordon became the first Ohio State sophomore to ever reach 1,000 kills. Six players reached 1,000 kills as juniors and seven as senior. The only exception to this is Vanessa Wouters (1996-97), a transfer from Southwest Missouri State who played her final two years at Ohio State. She reached 1,000 kills in her 46th match for OSU, but as a senior. Gordon, as a sophomore, reached 1,000 kills in her 53rd match. With 32 kills against Michigan and 21 against Michigan State, she now has 1,045 career kills and ranks 15th on the OSU career kills list. Gordon needs five kills to move to 14th on the list and would pass Sherri Helman (1993-96) with 1,049.
GORDON TOPS CONFERENCE STATISTICS IN KILLS PER GAME
Stacey Gordon continues to lead the Big Ten in kills per game, overall at 5.85 and in conference matches at 5.75. In overall statistics, Gordon ranks fourth in digs at 3.42 and seventh in aces at .35 per game. She is 7th in aces at .34 per game in conference statistics and sixth in digs at 3.15.
GORDON CONTINUES DOUBLE-FIGURE KILLS STREAK
Stacey Gordon continued her consecutive streak of double-figure kill matches with 32 kills against Michigan and 21 against Michigan State. She now has recorded double-figure kills in her last 39 matches. For her career, Gordon has double-figure kills in 52 of 54 matches and has 25 matches with 20 or more kills. Defensively, Gordon has 17 double-figure dig matches this season and 36 in her career. She has had 35 double-doubles (kills-digs) in her career.
GORDON RANKED FIFTH NATIONALLY IN KILLS PER GAME LAST WEEK
Stacey Gordon, with a 5.77 kills per game average last week, was ranked fifth nationally in the national statistics release by the NCAA. She is currently averaging 5.85 kills per game. The NCAA national leaders will be released later this week on the NCAA web site at http://goomer.ncaa.org:8080/stats/reports’sportCode=WVB&rpt=wkly. National leaders from this week are listed below:
STILING TAKES FOURTH IN OSU CAREER TOTAL BLOCKS
Suzie Stiling, with seven (1 solo, six assists) total blocks against Michigan and four assist blocks against Michigan State has moved into a third place tie on the OSU career total blocks list with 413 (60 solos, 353 assists). She has tied Dana Stearns (1997-00) (33-380).
DRAEGER TIES FOR FIFTH IN CAREER ACES
Shelly Draeger, with two ace serves against Michigan State, has moved to a fifth-place tie on the OSU career aces list with 138. She has tied Marlenee O’Brien (1983-86).
DRAEGER NOW 16TH IN CAREER ASSIST BLOCKS
With seven assist blocks last weekend, Shelly Draeger has moved to 16th on the Ohio State career assist blocks list. She recorded four assist blocks against Michigan and three against Michigan State to raise her career total to 188. Draeger moved past Laura Davis (1991-94) who has 187 assists.
VIRTUE MOVES TOWARD OSU CAREER ASSIST RECORD
With 5,225 career assists, Katie Virtue has moved a little closer to the OSU career assist record of 5,483 held by Laura Davis (1991-94). Virtue had 64 assists against Michigan and 48 against Michigan State to move within 259 of becoming OSU’s career leader. In conference statistics, she leads the Big Ten in assists per game at 13.83 (conference matches) and is third in overall statistics at 13.25.
VIRTUE MOVES TO 15TH IN CAREER TOTAL BLOCKS
Katie Virtue has moved to 15th on the OSU career total blocks list after collecting five blocks last weekend. She now has 218 total blocks on 16 solo and 202 assists. Virtue moved past Jenny Collins (1982-85) with 214 (84-130) blocks. In the matches last weekend, Virtue had a solo and two assists against Michigan and two assist blocks against Michigan State.
HIGGINS EQUALS CAREER HIGH IN ASSIST BLOCKS
With seven assist blocks against Michigan State, Stephanie Higgins equaled her career high for the fourth time this season. She added eight kills, two digs and two ace serves against the Spartans. Higgins picked up seven kills, two assist blocks, one dig and an ace serve the previous night against Michigan. In conference statistics, she is ranked 14th in blocking with a 1.00 per game average.
ANDERSSON HAS CAREER HIGH KILLS AGAINST SPARTANS
Anna Andersson (Fr., Angelholm, Sweden) had a career-high 13 kills against Michigan State last week. She added five digs and equaled her career-high of four assist blocks against the Spartans.
KASTEIN ADDS ANOTHER DOUBLE-FIGURE DIG MATCH
With 11 digs against Michigan State, Rebecca Kastein (Fr., Mt. Lebanon, Pa.) recorded her fifth match with double-figure digs. Kastein has established herself as the libero on the squad as she has played the position in the last ten matches for the Buckeyes. She has played in a total of 15 matches and is averaging 1.93 digs per game.
BUCKEYES HURT BY INJURIES
Ohio State, in the first four weeks of the season, was hit hard by injuries, The Buckeyes had five players injured in the first month of action with three now back in action. Since then Heather Whalen also has missed matches due to an injury. Below is a list of the players and their current status.
Maria Pongonis (Fr., Cincinnati, Ohio), foot stress fracture at Hawaii, currently unavailable for competition
Katie Virtue, fractured hand in Illinois-Chicago match, missed seven matches, now playing
Jackie Schardt, concussion on Sept. 17, missed three matches, now playing
Katherine Grant (Fr., Nashville, Tenn.), dislocated elbow in Miami (Ohio) match, currently unavailable for competition
Anna Andersson, knee sprain on Sept. 20, missed eight matches, now playing
Heather Whalen (Jr., Kalamazoo, Mich.), concussion on Oct. 31, missed two matches, now playing
WHO IS STARTING?
Because of the five early season injuries for the Buckeyes, Ohio State has tried to find the right starting combination with the available players. In 23 matches, the Buckeyes have used 12 different starting combinations and at one point used a different lineup in 10 consecutive matches. Each of the 14 student-athletes has now started at least one match this season.
OHIO STATE 3, MICHIGAN 1
Ohio State defeated Michigan 3-1 (28-30, 30-20, 30-20, 30-28) behind a 32-kill, 15-dig performance by Stacey Gordon. Shelly Draeger added 12 and Suzie Stiling 11 for the Buckeyes. UM’s Katrina Lehman and Nicole Poquette scored 10 kills each for the Wolverines. OSU held a 27-25 lead in game one before Michigan won the game 30-28. OSU won games two and three by 30-20 scores with Michigan hitting .026 in game two and .086 in game three. The Buckeyes took an 8-7 lead in game four and held on for a 30-28 win. Ohio State hit .279 for the match to .146 for Michigan. The Buckeyes had a 72-50 kill advantage in the match. OSU had a 5-1 margin in ace serves with Andersson recording a match-high two aces. The Buckeyes gave up 13 service errors to six for Michigan. Ohio State had a 54-39 advantage in digs UM’s Jennifer Gandolph collecting a team-high 11. The Wolverines out blocked Ohio State, 12.5-10. OSU’s Stiling had a match-high seven blocks with one solo and six assists. Lehman had a team-high six blocks (1-5) for Michigan. OSU’s Katie Virtue had a match-high 64 assists with UM’s Gamalski recording 36.
OHIO STATE 3, MICHIGAN STATE 1
With a 3-1 (30-25, 29-31, 30-17, 30-18) win over Michigan State, Ohio State moved to 7-7 in the Big Ten after starting 0-5. OSU’s Stacey Gordon scored a match-high 21 kills and Anna Andersson added a career-high 13 for the Buckeyes. MSU’s Kyla Smith had a team-high 13 kills with Jenny Rood adding 12. OSU trailed 25-20 in game two, tied the game at 25. After ties at 28 and 29, kills by Rood and Smith made it 31-29 for MSU. The Buckeyes opened a 10-1 lead in game three, winning 30-17. Game four saw OSU open a 20-11 lead. MSU cut the margin to 23-17 but OSU won 30-18. Ohio State hit .230 for the match to .164 for Michigan State. OSU had a 63-51 advantage in kills and had a 12-1 margin in ace serves. The Spartans gave up 11 service errors to six for OSU. Michigan State had a 47-46 advantage in digs with Emmy Miller recording a match-high 12 digs. OSU’s Gordon and Rebecca Kastein collected a team-high 11 digs each. The Spartans had a 14.5-11 advantage at the net in blocks. OSU’s Stephanie Higgins (seven assists) and MSU’s Rood (three solos, four assists) shared match-high honors with seven blocks each. OSU’s Katie Virtue recorded a match-high 48 assists to 42 for MSU’s Nikki Colson.
BUCKEYE HEAD COACH JIM STONE
Jim Stone is in his 21st season at Ohio State. He has a 422-239 record with the Buckeyes and is 243-138 in Big Ten play. His squads have won Big Ten Championships in 1989, 1991 and 1994 and in the last 13 years have finished in the Top 3 in the league 10 times. 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 in 11 of the last 13 years, advancing to the national semifinals in 1991 and 1994. Stone’s coaching career record includes three years at Wyoming (1979-1981). His 23-year career record is 472-281.
NEXT WEEK FOR OHIO STATE
Ohio State makes its final conference road trip with matches at Iowa (8-16, 2-12) Fri., Nov. 22 and #6 Minnesota (26-3, 13-1) Sat., Nov. 23. The Buckeyes then close out the regular season with home matches against Illinois (11-12, 5-9) Fri., Nov. 29 and Purdue (11-16, 1-13) Sat., Nov. 30.
