Volleyball At Northwestern And Illinois – Ohio State Buckeyes
10/8/2003 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Oct. 8, 2003
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COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio State (7-5, 1-3) women’s volleyball opens week three of the Big Ten season with road matches at Northwestern and Illinois. The Buckeyes face Northwestern at 8 p.m. ET, Friday, Oct. 10 in Evanston and Illinois at 8 p.m., ET, Saturday, Oct. 11 in Champaign. Ohio State split a pair of home matches last weekend, defeating Indiana, 3-0, (30-24, 30-28, 30-24) and losing to Purdue, 1-3 (30-27, 25-30, 22-30, 20-30).
A LOOK AT OHIO STATE
The Buckeyes, coached by Jim Stone, are 7-5 overall and have a 1-3 record in the Big Ten. Last week OSU defeated Indiana, 3-0, and lost to Purdue, 1-3, in home matches. Ohio State’s top student-athlete is 2002 first team American Volleyball Coaches Association All-American Stacey Gordon (Jr., Oshawa, Ontario). Gordon has team highs of 6.13 kills, .43 aces and 3.48 digs per game. Amanda Miller (So., Littleton, Colo.) ranks second in kills at 3.22 with Heather Whalen (Sr., Kalamazoo, Mich.), third at 2.33. Starting at setter is Briana McCarthy (Fr., Beaver Dam, Wis.). She has a 10.65 assist per game average. At the net, D’wan Shackleford (5th-year senior, Newark, Ohio) has a team-high 1.39 blocks per game with seven solos and 57 assists. McCarthy ranks second at 1.02 (3-44) with Katherine Grant (So., Nashville, Tenn.) third at .95 (1-41). At libero, Anna Tengnas (Fr., Torsaberga, Sweden) has 2.36 digs per game average ranking third on the team. Whalen, with a 2.46 digs per game average ranks second. As a team, Ohio State is hitting .228 and averaging 16.39 kills per game. The Buckeyes average 1.30 aces, 13.26 digs and 2.87 blocks per game. OSU opponents are hitting .198 and average 13.13 kills per game. Opponents average 1.22 aces, 11.54 digs and 3.11 blocks per game. A LOOK AT NORTHWESTERN
The Wildcats, coached by Keylor Chan, have an overall record of 10-6 and are 1-3 in the Big Ten. On the road last week, the Wildcats lost at Minnesota, 0-3, 32-34, 26-30, 32-34 and defeated Iowa, 3-0 (30-16, 30-19, 30-22). The Northwestern attack is led by Iwona Lodzik and Erika Lange who average 4.35 and 4.19 kills per game, respectively. Jill Buschur ranks third at 3.13. At setter, Drew Robertson averages 12.96 assists per game. Buschur is the top server on the team with a .41 aces (22) per game. Christie Gardner is second at .33 (18). Defensively, Lodzik leads the team in digs with a 3.00 per game average. Gardner ranks second at 2.67. At the net, Lange has a 1.17 blocks (17 solos, 46 assists) per game average with Leah Delcourt second at .80 (2-35). The Wildcats are hitting .258 and average 16.57 kills per game. Northwestern averages 1.72 aces, 15.13 digs and 2.07 blocks per game. Opponents are hitting .196 and average 12.94 kills per game. Northwestern opponents average 1.43 aces, 12.69 digs and 2.00 blocks per game.
OSU SERIES WITH NORTHWESTERN
Ohio State leads the series, 36-13, against the Wildcats. Ohio State has won 13 of 20 matches played in Evanston, 17 of 21 played in Columbus and six of eight on neutral sites. Last season, the Buckeyes won 3-2 (23-30, 32-30, 25-30, 30-27, 15-8) in Evanston and 3-0 (30-24, 30-27, 30-22) in Columbus.
A LOOK AT ILLINOIS
The Illini, coached by Don Hardin, have an 11-3 overall record and are 2-2 in the Big Ten. In matches on the road, Illinois won at Iowa, 3-0 (30-21, 30-25, 30-18) and lost at Minnesota, 1-3 (21-30, 30-24, 21-30, 19-30). The Illini attack has Lisa Argabright leading in kills at 3.80 per game. Melissa Vandrey ranks second at 3.26 with Rachel VanMeter third at 3.19. At setter, Erin Virtue is averaging 12.53 assists per game. Virtue leads the team in aces (16) per game at .31. Defensively, Lauren Harks leads the team in digs with a 3.18 per game average. Virtue ranks second at 2.75. At the net, Argabright is the team’s top blocker with a 1.29 blocks (13 solos, 53 assists) per game average. Shelly O’Bryan ranks second at .94 (9-38). The Illini are hitting .241 and average 15.06 kills per game. Illinois averages 1.33 aces, 15.61 digs and 2.94 blocks per game. Opponents are hitting .159 and average 14.49 kills per game. Illinois opponents average 1.29 aces, 15.24 digs and 2.23 blocks per game.
OSU SERIES WITH ILLINOIS
Ohio State holds a 28-25 lead in the series with Illinois. In matches played in Champaign, each team has won 12 matches. OSU has an 11-10 advantage in matches in Columbus and 5-3 in neutral site matches. Last season Ohio State won 3-2 (30-24, 24-30, 27-30, 30-16, 15-6) in Champaign and 3-0 (30-17, 30-27, 30-27) in Columbus
GORDON: 60 CONSECUTIVE DOUBLE-FIGURE KILL MATCHES AND COUNTING
With 26 kills against Indiana and 21 against Purdue, Stacey Gordon now has recorded double-figure kills in her last 60 matches. The streak began against Minnesota in 2001 and could have been longer but for the previous match against Iowa where she did not play in the front row due to an injury. She only played in the back row against the Hawkeyes, collecting 10 digs. She had double-figure kills in the previous seven matches. Gordon’s only match without double-figure kills was against Evansville in 2001 when she recorded eight kills. Overall, she has had double-figure kills in 73 of 75 matches in her career and has 53 matches with double-figure digs. Gordon has had 40 matches with 20 or more kills and seven of those had 30 or more.
GORDON ADDS TWO MORE DOUBLE-FIGURE KILL GAMES
For the fifth time this season, Stacey Gordon has recorded individual games with 10 or more kills. Last week she had 10 kills in game three against Indiana and came back with another 10-kill performance in game one against Purdue. Gordon now has five individual games with 10 or more kills this season. Previously she recorded 12 kills in game three against Michigan State, 10 at Miami in game four and 10 against Temple in game four.
GORDON’S BIG NUMBERS CONTINUE
OSU’s Stacey Gordon continues to lead the Buckeyes in three categories. She leads the team in kills per game at 6.13, aces at .43 per game and digs at 3.48 per game. She leads the Big Ten with a 6.13 kills per game average for all matches and 5.86 per game in conference matches. In conference matches, she also ranks ninth in digs per game at 2.93.
GORDON SECOND IN OSU CAREER KILLS, CLOSING IN ON LEADER
With 47 kills (26 vs. Indiana, 21 vs. Purdue) last week, Stacey Gordon now has 1,530 career kills for the Buckeyes. She ranks second overall on the OSU career kills list. She now stands 273 kills behind all-time career leader Holly O’Leary (1987-90) with 1,802.
GORDON 20TH IN CAREER ACES
Stacey Gordon ranks 20th in career aces for the Buckeyes with 100. She needs two to pass Margie Meyers (1984-87) and Katie Virtue (1999-02) who are tied for 18th with 101 aces. Two ace serves would tie Gordon with No. 17 Jen Flynn (1996-99) who has 102. Gordon has not had an ace serve in her last five matches.
GORDON MOVES TO 17TH IN CAREER DIGS
Stacey Gordon recorded 19 digs (6 vs. Indiana, 13 vs. Purdue) last week to move to 17th on the OSU career digs list with 902. She passed No. 19 Katie Virtue (1999-02) with 885, No. 18 Anne Botica (1998-01) with 893 and No. 17 Shelly Draeger (1999-02) with 900. Gordon needs eight digs to pass No. 16 Margie Meyers (1984-87) with 909, 10 to pass No. 15 Lisa Bettio (1982-85) with 911.
McCARTHY RANKS THIRD IN BIG TEN ASSISTS
Briana McCarthy has moved to third in the Big Ten Conference statistics with a 13.43 assists per game average for conference matches. Overall, she is averaging 10.65 which includes two matches that she played outside hitter. In conference only statistics, McCarthy ranks fifth in hitting percentage at .355 and ninth in blocking at 1.02 per game. Her 490 assists rank her 12th on the OSU career list and is 17 behind teammate No. 11 Heather Whalen with 506. McCarthy ranks fifth in career assists per game at 10.65. Last week against Indiana, she recorded career-highs of three aces and two solo blocks against the Hoosiers.
MILLER HITS CAREER HIGH AGAINST INDIANA
With a .636 (16 kills, 2 errors, 22 attempts) hitting percentage against Indiana, Amanda Miller established a new career high against the Hoosiers. Her previous best was .500 (8-2-12) against Bowling Green earlier this season. Miller ranks second in the Big Ten Conference matches in hitting percentage at .382. She stands 18th in kills per game in league contests at 3.57. Against Purdue, Miller recorded a career-high two solo blocks.
SHACKLEFORD LEADS SQUAD IN BLOCKING
Playing her first season of volleyball since her sophomore year in high school, D’wan Shackleford has given the Buckeyes a boost at the net in blocking. She ranks sixth in the Big Ten with a 1.21 blocks per game average on 17 assist blocks. Shackleford is third in overall statistics with a 1.39 average on seven solos and 57 assists.
WHALEN CONTINUES TO IMPROVE WITH POSITION SWITCH
After starting the first two matches at setter, Heather Whalen switched to outside hitter and ranks third for OSU in kills per game at 2.33. In conference matches she is 13th in hitting percentage at .293 and ranks sixth in digs at 3.21 per game. She has produced double-figure kills in five of her last eight matches and double-figure digs in the last three matches.
CRAM SERVING UP ACES
OSU’s Holly Cram (So., La Mirada, Calif.), playing as a back row server, collected a career-high two ace serves against Indiana last week. She also picked up a dig against Purdue. In 2001, Cram started 13 of 16 matches for the Ohio State women’s soccer team as a midfielder.
GRANT SERVES UP THREE ACES AGAINST PURDUE
Katherine Grant found the mark against the Boilermakers with a career-high three ace serves against Purdue last week. She had a single ace serve in two previous matches, the last against Temple. On the weekend, Grant added five kills and two assist blocks against Indiana and eight kills, two digs, two assist blocks and her three aces against Purdue.
KASTEIN PROVIDES SUPPORT IN THE BACK ROW
From the back row, Rebecca Kastein (So., Mt. Lebanon, Pa.) recorded her first career kill last week against Indiana. She added seven digs against the Hoosiers, an ace serve and two assists. In the Purdue match, Kastein recorded her sixth double-figure dig match with 10. She is averaging 2.09 digs per game and has 11 ace serves on the season. In Big Ten league statistics, Kastein ranks 16th in aces per game at .29.
GORDON LEADS BIG TEN OVERALL STATISTICS IN KILLS PER GAME
In the overall statistics released by the Big Ten Conference this week, Stacey Gordon leads the conference in kills per game at 6.13, is fourth in aces at .43 and third in digs at 3.48. D’wan Shackleford ranks third in blocking with a 1.39 per game average with setter Briana McCarthy ninth at 1.02 per game. McCarthy is 10th in assists at 10.65 per game and fifth in hitting percentage at .355.
GORDON TOPS THE BIG TEN CONFERENCE STATISTICS IN KILLS, MILLER SECOND IN HITTING
After two weeks of Big Ten Conference play, the conference-only statistics have Stacey Gordon leading the Big Ten in kills per game at 5.86. She is also ninth in digs at 2.93 per game. Amanda Miller ranks second in hitting percentage at .382 with Heather Whalen 13th at .293. Miller is 18th in kills per game at 3.57 while Whalen is sixth in digs at 3.21 per game. Setter Briana McCarthy is third in the conference in assists at 13.43 per game. She ranks 14th in aces at .29 per game and is 17th in blocking at 1.00 blocks per game. D’wan Shackleford stands sixth in blocking at 1.21 per game. Rebecca Kastein, in aces per game, is ranked 16th at .29 per game.
GORDON SECOND IN KILLS, SHACKLEFORD 30TH IN BLOCKING IN NCAA
In the current NCAA Division I volleyball statistics released this week, Stacey Gordon ranks second in the country in kills per game with a 6.13 average. Kim Willoughby of Hawaii leads the country with a 6.76 average. OSU’s D’wan Shackleford stands at 30th in the country in blocks per game with a 1.39 average.
OHIO STATE RANKED IN THREE TEAM CATEGORIES IN NCAA STATISTICS
Ohio State is ranked in three team categories in the NCAA Division I volleyball statistics release this week. The Buckeyes are 24th in kills per game at 16.39 and 27th in assists per game at 14.87. Ohio State also is ranked 24th in blocking with a 2.87 average.
BUCKEYES RECORD SEASON-HIGH HITTING PERCENTAGE AGAINST INDIANA
Ohio State hit a season-high .443 against Indiana last weekend. The Buckeyes recorded 64 kills with 13 errors in 115 attempts. Previously, the best mark for Ohio State was .309 (71-24-152) against Ball State.
OSU HAS THREE BIG TEN CONFERENCE TV APPEARANCES
The Big Ten announced its television schedule for women’s volleyball on both ESPN2 and FOX Sports Chicago. Ohio State will play in three of the scheduled 10 matches. OSU will face defending Big Ten champion Minnesota in one of three matches carried by ESPN2. The Saturday, Nov. 29 match in Minneapolis will be shown at 2 p.m. ET, Sunday, Nov. 30. The Buckeyes also will face the Gophers in St. John Arena Friday, Oct. 17 in a FOX Sports Chicago match that will be carried live by FSN Chicago and North and will be shown at 4 p.m. ET, Sunday, Oct. 19. Ohio State’s third match is at Wisconsin, Saturday, Oct. 25. FOX Sports Chicago will carry it at 4 p.m. ET, Sunday, Oct. 26.
NEXT FOR THE BUCKEYES
Ohio State will host Minnesota at 7 p.m., Friday, Oct. 17 and face Iowa at 2 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 19 in St. John Arena. The Ohio State-Minnesota match will be broadcast by Fox Sports Chicago. It will be show live in some areas (FSN Chicago & North) and tape delay in others.
