No. 7 Women’s Volleyball Hosts No. 4 Penn St. Wednesday and Illinois Friday – Ohio State Buckeyes
11/16/2004 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Nov. 16, 2004
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COLUMBUS, Ohio – The seventh-ranked Ohio State (24-2 overall, 14-2 Big Ten) women’s volleyball team closes out a four-match home stand by hosting No. 4 Penn State (23-2, 14-2) and Illinois (18-7, 10-6) this week. The Buckeyes will face the Nittany Lions Wednesday, Nov. 17 and the Illini Friday, Nov. 19 with both matches starting at 7 p.m. in St. John Arena.
GORDON NAMED BIG TEN PLAYER OF THE WEEK
The Big Ten Conference office announced Monday that Ohio State’s Stacey Gordon (Sr., Oshawa, Ontario) earned Big Ten Player of the Week honors after helping No. 8 Ohio State to a pair of home wins over the weekend. The Buckeye senior registered a career-high 27 digs as well as 30 kills and a .414 hitting percentage against Northwestern on Friday. Her previous high was 23 digs, recorded at Purdue in 2003. In game two, she hit .636 with 7 kills in 11 attempts and did not tally one error. In game three, she posted double-figure digs (10) and then responded in game four with a .688 clip and an errorless 11 kills on 16 attempts. Gordon nearly posted a double-double against Wisconsin as she finished with 19 kills and 9 digs, while hitting .375 against the Badgers. With 30 kills against Northwestern and 19 versus Wisconsin, Gordon extended her consecutive double-figure kill streak to 102 matches. On the weekend, she averaged 7.0 kills and 5.14 digs per game in the two matches while hitting .398. This is Gordon’s fifth Player of the Week honor of the season and the 16th of her career.
A LOOK AT OHIO STATE
The Buckeyes are coached by Jim Stone. Ohio State is 24-2 on the season and 14-2 in the Big Ten. OSU is tied for first ce in the Big Ten Conference with Penn State. The Buckeyes are ranked seventh in the latest USA TODAY/CSTV Coaches Poll.
OHIO STATE BY THE NUMBERS
For the season, Stacey Gordon (Sr., Oshawa, Ontario) leads the Buckeyes in kills with 634 for a 7.20 per game average. She is also the team leader in aces with 33 (.38 per game), in digs with 298 (3.39) and is hitting a team-high .380. Setter Marisa Main (So., Louisville, Ky.) leads the team in assists 1,319 (14.82 per game) and is second in hitting percentage at .363. Ami Stevens (Fr., Centerburg, Ohio) ranks second in digs with 252 (2.83) with Rebecca Kastein (Jr., Mt. Lebanon, Pa.) third with 250 (3.01). At the net, Danielle Meyer (Fr., Cincinnati, Ohio) has a team-high 89 blocks with five solos and 84 assists for a 1.01 per game average. Meyer is second in kills with 262 for a 2.98 per game average. Briana McCarthy (So., Beaver Dam, Wis.) ranks second in block with 71 (10-61) averaging .80. Maya Mapp (Sr., Washington, D.C.) is third in blocks with 67 (9-58) for a .83 average. (Ohio State is hitting .322 on the season and is averaging 18.47 kills per game. The Buckeyes average 1.58 aces, 15.45 digs and 2.35 blocks per game. OSU opponents are hitting .203 and average 13.51 kills per game. Opponents are averaging .85 aces, 12.64 digs and 2.06 blocks per game.
A LOOK AT PENN STATE
The Nittany Lions are coached by Russ Rose. Fourth-ranked Penn State is 23-2 overall and 14-2 in the Big Ten. They are tied with the Buckeyes for first place in the conference. Last week Penn State won home games against Wisconsin, 3-1 (23-30, 32-30, 30-25, 30-28) and Northwestern, 3-0 (30-17, 30-25, 30-8). Penn State has won seven consecutive matches since losing 3-2 at home to the Buckeyes.
PENN STATE BY THE NUMBERS
Kate Price leads Penn State in kills with 341 (4.01 per game). Ashley Pederson ranks second with 333. Setter Sam Tortorello has 1,200 assists, averaging 13.95 per game. Tortorello leads the team with 24 aces (.28) with Kaleena Walters second with 21 (.24). Defensively, Syndie Nadeau has a team-high 267 digs (3.10) with Tortorello second with 253 (2.94). At the net, Cassy Salyer leads the team with 95 blocks with 14 solos and 81 assists for a 1.12 per game average. Kim Holm is second with 69 blocks (12-57) and is averaging 1.11 per game. Penn State is hitting .292 and has a 17.37 kills per game average. The Nittany Lions average 1.33 aces, 19.63 digs and 2.99 blocks per game. PSU opponents are hitting .156 and average 14.12 kills per game. Opponents average .73 aces, 17.80 digs and 2.53 blocks per game.
OHIO STATE – PENN STATE SERIES
Penn State leads the series with Ohio State, 24-13. Ohio State trails 7-10 in matches played in Columbus. Since 2001, Ohio State is 4-3 against the Nittany Lions winning twice in Columbus and twice at Penn State. Earlier this season, Ohio State won 3-2 (30-25, 22-30, 30-26, 26-30, 15-11) in State College.
OHIO STATE – PENN STATE SERIES IN THE LAST FOUR YEARS
In the last four years, Ohio State has won four of the seven matches with Penn State. The Buckeyes won both matches in 2001. That season, Ohio State won 3-2 (30-24, 28-30, 28-30, 31-29, 15-12) in Columbus and 3-0 (30-19, 30-23, 30-19) at Penn State. The squads split the matches in 2002 with Penn State winning 3-2 (23-30, 22-30, 30-26, 30-20, 15-9) at home and Ohio State winning 3-0 (30-28, 32-30, 30-25) in Columbus. The Nittany Lions won both matches last season. Penn State won 3-0 (30-18, 30-20, 30-25) at home and 3-1 (17-30, 30-27, 30-21, 30-25) in Columbus. Earlier this season, Ohio State won 3-2 (30-25, 22-30, 30-26, 26-30, 15-11) at Penn State. In the last three matches played in Columbus, OSU has won seven of 12 games. In those games, the Buckeye has scored 327 points to Penn State’s 315. Over the last four years (seven matches), Ohio State has won 15 games to 13 for Penn State. Ohio State has scored 718 points to 708 for Penn State. In games settled by two points, OSU has won three and Penn State two. In games decided by five points or less, Ohio State has won eight to seven for Penn State.
A LOOK AT ILLINOIS
The Illini are coached by Don Hardin. Illinois has an 18-7 overall record and is 10-6 in the Big Ten. They enter the week tied for fourth in the Big Ten with Wisconsin. Last week, Illinois won 3-0 (30-20, 30-18, 30-22) at Indiana and lost 3-2 (25-30, 30-24, 30-32, 31-29, 15-11) at Purdue.
ILLINOIS BY THE NUMBERS
Leading the Illini in kills is Rachel VanMeter with 402 for a 4.32 kills per game average. Jessica Belter ranks second with 324 (3.48 per game). At setter Stephanie Obermeier has 869 assists for a 13.58 per game average. Meghan Macdonald has a team-high 29 aces (.31) with Rasa Virsilaite second with 24 (.26). Defensively, Lauren Harks has a team-high 288 digs (3.10) with Kathleen Bazzetta second with 231 (2.48). At the net, Macdonald leads the team with 85 blocks with 14 solos and 71 assists for a .91 per game average. Belter is second with 75 (0-75), averaging .81 per game. Illinois is hitting .266 and averages 16.62 kills per game. The Illini average 1.68 aces, 14.58 digs and 2.40 blocks per game. Opponents are hitting .231 and average 15.18 kills per game. Illini opponents average .81 aces, 14.20 digs and 2.24 blocks per game.
OHIO STATE – ILLINOIS SERIES
Ohio State holds a 29-27 lead in the series with Illinois. In Columbus, the Buckeyes are 12-10 against the Illini. Ohio State has won five of the last seven matches including the last three in St. John Arena. Earlier this season, Illinois handed Ohio State its first loss of the season 3-0 (30-26, 30-22, 30-14).
REVIEWING THE NORTHWESTERN MATCH
Stacey Gordon had a match-high 30.5 points with 30 kills (414) and an assist block and added a career-high 27 digs in leading Ohio State to a 3-1 (30-32, 30-20, 30-20, 30-11) win over Northwestern. Maya Mapp had 18.5 points with a season-high 15 kills (.455), a solo block and five assists with Ami Stevens adding 18 with a career-high 17 kills and two assist blocks. Briana McCarthy contributed 14.5 points with four kills, a career-high five ace serves, a career-high four solo blocks and three assist blocks. Wildcat Lindsey Anderson had a team-high 13 points with 12 kills and two assist blocks with Stephanie Jurivich adding 11.5 with 10 kills, one solo block and one assist block. After Northwestern hit .378 in their 32-30 game one win, the Wildcats hit only .026 in the final three games. Ohio State hit .360 for the match to .126 for Northwestern. OSU had an 82-42 margin in kills and an 8-5 advantage in aces. Each squad had eight service errors. Defensively, the Buckeyes had an 80-49 advantage in digs and out blocked the Wildcats, 15.5 to six. Buckeye setter Marisa Main had a career-high 67 assist in the match to 31 for NU’s Drew Robertson.
REVIEWING THE WISCONSIN MATCH
Ohio State defeated Wisconsin, 3-0 (30-18, 32-30, 30-23) to remain tied with Penn State for first place in the Big Ten. Stacey Gordon had a match-high 19.5 points with 19 kills and an assist block. Ami Stevens had 15.5 points with 12 kills, two ace serves and three assist blocks. Maya Mapp and Danielle Meyer contributed 11.5 points each with Mapp recording nine kills (.750), a solo block and three assists blocks with Meyer recording eight kills (.353), an ace serve and five assist blocks. Wisconsin’s Aubrey Meierotto had a team-high 13 points with 13 kills with Sheila Shaw adding 11 points with 10 kills and an ace serve. Wisconsin had game point in the second game at 30-29, but a Gordon kill tied the game at 30 with the Buckeyes winning, 32-30. Ohio State hit .351 in the game to .175 for Wisconsin. The Buckeyes had a 53-42 margin in kills and had a six to three advantage in ace serves. The Badgers gave up nine service errors to six for Ohio State. Defensively, Ohio State had a 48-39 margin in digs with OSU’s Rebecca Kastein recording a match-high 12 digs. At the net, the Buckeyes had a 9.5 to six advantage in team blocks. Meyer had a match-high five assist blocks in the match. OSU setter Marisa Main collected 44 assists in the match while Wisconsin’s Jackie Simpson had 35.
GORDON LEADS THE COUNTRY IN KILLS PER GAME
The NCAA national statistics released last week had Stacey Gordon ranked first in the country in kills per game with a 7.22 average (7.20 currently). Setter Marisa Main was ranked third in assists per game nationally with a 14.73 (14.82) per game average. In team statistics, the Buckeyes were ranked first in kills per game at 18.40 (18.47) and second in assists at 16.90 (16.98) and hitting percentage, .319 (.322).
GORDON HOLDS OSU CAREER DIGS MARK WITH 1,426
With seven digs at Illinois, Stacey Gordon became the Ohio State career leader in digs with 1,342. She passed the previous leader, Leisa Wissler (1988-91) with 1,341. Currently, Gordon has 1,426 career digs and is the Ohio Sate career leader in digs per game at 3.35.
GORDON THE ALL-TIME BIG TEN CAREER KILLS LEADER WITH 2,590
With 31 kills against Michigan, Stacey Gordon became the all-time Big Ten leader in career kills and currently has 2,590. She set the record with her 27th kill against Michigan in the fourth game of the match. Gordon past previous leader, Nicole Branagh (1997-2000) of Minnesota who finished her career with 2,379.
GORDON STANDS AT SIXTHIN NCAA CAREER KILLS
Stacey Gordon ranks sixth on the Division I career kills list with 2,590. She needs 86 kills to pass No. 5 Priscilla Pacheco of Georgia (1991-94) who has 2,675. Gordon’s career kills per game average of 6.08 ranks third on the Division I list behind current leader Sara McFarland of Loyola Marymount (1997-2000) at 6.43 (2,020 kills, 314 games) and No. 2 Svetlana Vtyurina of George Washington (1992-95) at 6.24 (3,043-488).
GORDON EXTENDS DOUBLE-FIGURE KILL STREAK TO 102 MATCHES
Stacey Gordon, with 30 kills against Northwestern and 19 against Wisconsin, has extended her streak of double-figure kill matches to 102. She has had 20 or more kills in 16 of her last 17 matches and 73 in her career. Gordon has had double-figure kills in 115 of her 117 matches in her career.
GORDON HAS CAREER-HIGH 27 DIGS AGAINST NORTHWESTERN
Stacey Gordon collected a career-high 27 digs in the Northwestern match. Her previous high was 23 at Purdue in 2003. She had a match-high 30 kills and hit .414 against the Wildcats. In the Wisconsin match, Gordon had a match-high 19 kills and hit .375 against the Badgers.
GORDON NAMED TO CoSIDA ACADEMIC ALL-DISTRICT SECOND TEAM
Stacey Gordon was selected to the CoSIDA Academic All-District second team by a vote of members of the College Sports Information Directors of American within the district. The district team is made up of student-athletes from Division I schools in Alabama, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and Tennessee. To be nominated, student-athletes must be a starter or important reserve, and carry a cumulative grade point average of 3.20 or higher.
GORDON’S CAREER RANKINGS AT OHIO STATE
1. Kills, 2,590 1. Digs, 1,426 1. Kills Per Game, 6.08 1. Digs Per Game, 3.35 1. Attack Attempts, 5,579 16.+ Solo Blocks, 33 5. Attack Percentage, .301 18. Assist Blocks, 180 4.+ Ace Serves, 157 18. Total Blocks, 213 6. Aces Per Game, .37 1. Points, 2,870 1. Points Per Game, 6.74
MEYER AVERAGING A BLOCK A GAME
Danielle Meyer leads Ohio State in blocking, averaging 1.01 blocks per game for the season and 1.09 in conference play. She has five solos and a team-high 84 assist blocks. She ranks eighth in the Big Ten conference league statistics. Last week Meyer had a career-high two solo blocks and an assist block against Northwestern, adding six kills, five digs and an ace serve. She posted five assist blocks, eight kill, one ace serve and one dig. Meyer ranks second on the team in kills with 262 for a 2.98 per game average.
STEVENS HAS A CAREER-HIGH 17 KILLS AGAINST NORTHWESTERN
Ami Stevens posted a career-high 17 kills (.375) against Northwestern last week. Her previous high was 14, twice this season. She added 15 digs and two assist blocks against the Wildcats. In the Wisconsin match she had 12 kills (.286), nine digs, three assist blocks and two ace serves against the Badgers. Stevens ranks third on the squad in kills with 243 (2.73) and second in digs with 252 (2.83). With 23 ace serves, she ranks eighth in overall Big Ben statistics with a .29 per game average.
KASTEIN HANDLING THE LIBERO DUTIES
Rebecca Kastein has been the starting libero in 16 matches this season and has six starts at defensive specialist. Last week she had 12 digs in each of the matches against Northwestern and Wisconsin. Kastein also had a pair of ace serves against the Wildcats. On the season, she ranks third on the team in digs with 250, averaging 3.01 per game. She has had double-figure digs in 13 matches this season and twice recorded 19 digs in a match (at Minnesota and at Penn State) for her career high.
OHIO STATE IN THE CONFERENCE ONLY STATISTICS
Statistically in Big Ten Conference matches, Stacey Gordon leads the league in kills per game (7.32 per game), is fifth in aces per game (.27), ninth in digs (3.84) and sixth in hitting percentage (.349). Setter Marisa Main has a conference-high 14.75 assists per game average and leads the conference in hitting percentage at .385. Maya Mapp is ninth in hitting percentage at .309 and Danielle Meyer ranks eighth in blocks per game (1.09). As a team, the Buckeyes are ranked first in kills (18.64), assists (17.05) and hitting percentage (.308). Ohio State is second in aces (1.29), fifth in blocking (2.56) and fourth in digs (16.54).
OHIO STATE IN THE OVERALL CONFERENCE STATISTICS
In Big Ten Conference statistics for all matches, Stacey Gordon leads the league in kills (7.20 per game) and aces per game (.38). She is third in hitting percentage at .380 and 10th in digs (3.39). Marisa Main tops the conference in assists per game (14.82). OSU has Maya Mapp (Sr., Washington, D.C.) fifth in hitting percentage (.344) and Danielle Meyer 10th (.314). In aces per game, Ami Stevens ranks eighth in aces (.29). In overall team statistics, Ohio State ranks first in hitting percentage (.322), kills (18.47) and assists (16.98). The Buckeyes are second in aces (1.58), sixth in blocking (2.35) and eighth in digs (15.45).
BUCKEYES SEVENTH IN THE USA TODAY/CSTV TOP 25 COACHES POLL
The USA TODAY/CSTV Top 25 Coaches Poll released this week by the American Volleyball Coaches Association has Ohio State ranked seventh. The Buckeyes began the season unranked and entered the poll at 25th the second week of the season. OSU is one of three Big Ten squads ranked in the top-25. Penn State is ranked fourth and Minnesota fifth. Illinois and Wisconsin are listed as receiving points. Ohio State was last ranked in the top-10 during the second week of the 2002 season when it was ninth in the poll. The Buckeyes have not been as high as seventh since late November of the 1995 season.
COACH STONE PASSES 500 CAREER VICTORIES AND COUNTING
Ohio State’s win on Sept. 18 against Northeastern marked the 500th career victory for head coach Jim Stone. His career record stands at 515-301. At Ohio State, Stone’s record is 465-259 and he is 260-150 in the Big Ten.
GORDON HONORED AS BIG TEN AND NATIONAL PLAYER OF THE WEEK (Sept. 14)
Stacey Gordon has been named the Sports Imports/American Volleyball Coaches Association Division I National Player of the Week and the Big Ten Player of the week for leading the Buckeyes to victories over Xavier (Sept. 11) and Georgia Tech (Sept. 12). Gordon averaged 9.8 kills, 2.3 digs, 0.8 blocks and 10.4 points per game while hitting .480 on 98 attacks. She totaled 26 kills on a .561 attack percentage with four blocks and five digs versus Xavier. Gordon hit .421 with 33 kills, nine digs and a block versus then 21st-ranked Georgia Tech. She was named the most valuable player of the Georgia Tech Invitational as Ohio State stopped the host school’s 26-match home win streak. Gordon, who ended the weekend with 2,100 career kills, charted 11 or more kills in three of the six games played last week. This was the second time Gordon has been named the national player and was the 12th time in her career that she has been named the Big Ten Player of the Week.
GORDON HONORED AS THE BIG TEN PLAYER OF THE WEEK (Oct. 4)
Stacey Gordon earned Big Ten Player of the Week honors after leading the Buckeyes to conference wins over No. 1 Minnesota and Iowa. This is the 13th career Player of the Week honor for Gordon and the second this season. Gordon had a season-high 36 kills in a 3-1 (30-24, 30-23, 18-30, 30-24) upset of No. 1 Minnesota Friday night in St. John Arena. She averaged nine kills per game in the match while hitting .368. It was her 16th match with 30 or more kills in her career. Gordon produced double-figure kills in three of the four games against the Gophers. She had 10 kills in game one and 11 in games two and four. Gordon opened the match with her first three kills of the night and ended the match by scoring Ohio State’s final four points with kills. In Saturday’s 3-0 (30-24, 30-27, victory over Iowa, Gordon recorded 14 kills to extend her streak of consecutive matches with double-figure kills to 90. For her career, she has had double-figure kills in 103 of 105 matches. Her 12 digs against Minnesota and 16 versus Iowa gives her four consecutive matches with double-figure digs and now has seven double-figure dig matches this season. Gordon has recorded double-figure digs in 74 career matches with 72 matches with double-figure kills and digs in her career.
GORDON HONORED AS THE BIG TEN PLAYER OF THE WEEK (Oct. 18)
Stacey Gordon earned Big Ten Player of the Week honors after leading the Buckeyes to conference wins over Michigan State and Michigan. This is the 14th career Player of the Week honor for Gordon and the third this season. Gordon averaged 8.0 kills per game in two matches this past weekend and recorded her 2,380th career kill, which set the all-time Big Ten mark. The Buckeye senior had 25 kills in three games against Michigan State and 31 in a four-game match versus Michigan. Her record-breaking kill came on her 27th kill against the Wolverines, which gave OSU a 13-12 lead in game four. Gordon, who passed the mark of 2,379 set by Minnesota’s Nicole Branagh (1997-2000), ended the weekend with 2,384 career kills. Her current total moves her to seventh on the NCAA Division I career kills list. She stands 56 kills behind No. 6 Jill McCreary (1987, 89-91) of Akron who has 2,439. Gordon has a 5.99 career kills per game average which ranks third in the NCAA Division I career kills per game list. With double-figure kills in both matches, she also extended her streak of consecutive double-figure kill streak to 94 matches. Gordon averaged 9.0 points per game collecting 56 kills, four ace serves, two solo blocks and two assist blocks. She now has 2,652.5 career points (2,384 kills, 151 aces, 32 solo blocks, 171 assist blocks), has a 6.66 career points-per-game average and is now OSU’s career points-per-game leader. Her total passed Vanessa Wouters’ mark of 6.62 ppg set from 1996-97.
GORDON HONORED AS THE CO-BIG TEN PLAYER OF THE WEEK (Nov. 1)
Stacey Gordon earned Co-Big Ten Player of the Week honors after leading the Buckeyes to 3-0 conference home wins over Purdue and Indiana. This is the 15th career Player of the Week honor for Gordon and the fourth this season. She shares the honor with Wisconsin middle blocker Sheila Shaw. Gordon averaged 8.17 kills per game and hit .391 for the weekend as No. 7 Ohio State earned its first back-to-back sweeps in Conference play this season with 3-0 wins over Purdue (36-34, 30-23, 30-28) and Indiana (30-20, 30-20, 30-20). Gordon’s 8.17 mark is her best two-match weekend set in the Big Ten with her previous best being 8.00 (56 kills, 7 games) against Michigan State and Michigan. The senior outside hitter tallied an impressive 9.67 kills per game (29 kills, 3 games) against Purdue. Gordon also moved up the ranks in the OSU history books as well this weekend. Her solo block against Indiana moved her into a tie for 16th in Buckeye career solos with 33 and her three total blocks gave her 209 for her career and moved her to 18th on the OSU career blocks list. Gordon, who has registered double-figure kills in her last 98 matches, earns her fourth Player of the Week honor of the season and the 15th of her career.
19-0 RECORD IS BEST-EVER START FOR THE BUCKEYES
Ohio State’s 19-0 start this season ranks as the best-ever start in the history of the program. The previous best start was in 2001 when the Buckeyes began the season with a 13-0 overall record. The 19-match winning streak stands as the third longest in the history of Ohio State volleyball. The Buckeyes two longest streaks came in 1991 with 27 wins and 1994 with 21 wins. Those streaks resulted in Big Ten championships and ended in losses at the NCAA National Semifinal.
OSU VICTORY OVER NO. 1 MINNESOTA, A FIRST FOR THE BUCKEYES
The Ohio State victory over No. 1 Minnesota on Oct. 1 was the first time that the Buckeyes had defeated a top-ranked team. OSU had lost to the No. 1 team eight times prior to the win over the Gophers. Those losses included UCLA in 1990, Stanford in 1993, Florida in 1996, Penn State in 1997 and 1998 and twice in 1999 and Nebraska in 2000.
GORDON APPEARS IN SPORTS ILLUSTRATED ‘FACES IN THE CROWD’
Ohio State’s Stacey Gordon was featured in the ‘Faces In The Crowd’ page in Sports Illustrated at the beginning of October.
GORDON MONITORS SPORTS ILLUSTRATED ON CAMPUS POP QUIZ
Stacey Gordon made her second appearance in a Sports Illustrated publication when SI took a photo of her for a feature pop quiz in their On Campus magazine for Oct. 21.
BUCKEYES OPEN SEASON WITH THREE FRESHMEN IN THE STARTING LINEUP
Ohio State opened up the 2004 season with a starting lineup of three freshmen (Nicole Britenriker (Fr., Cincinnati, Ohio), Danielle Meyer, Ami Stevens), two sophomores (Briana McCarthy and Marisa Main) and a senior (Stacey Gordon). This marks the second time in six years that the Buckeyes had three freshmen in the starting lineup. In 1992, Suzie Stiling, Sue Calligaris and Shelly Dreager started in the opening match of the season. The 2004 lineup is the second youngest lineup for OSU. The youngest lineup came in 1992 when four sophomores (Laura Davis, Sara Daniel, Carrie Leonard and Gabriele Jobst) and two freshmen (Ashley Mullis, Kristine Jensen) started the season.
STEVENS IS GOLDEN FROM USA JUNIOR NATIONAL PLAY
Outside hitter Ami Stevens, prior to preseason practice, was a member of the USA Junior National Team that won gold at the North, Central America and Caribbean Volleyball Confederation (NORCECA) Junior Continental Championships played recently in Winnipeg, Manitoba. A two-time all-state selection, her high school squad won the 2003 state championship, finished runner-up in 2000 and 2001 and reached the state semifinals in 2002.
OSU SETS MATCH RECORD BY HITTING .595 AGAINST YOUNGSTOWN STATE
Ohio State, with a .595 hitting percentage against Youngstown State, broke the previous Ohio State match record. The previous mark was .531 set against Northern Illinois in 1994. OSU had 62 kills in 98 attempts with 10 errors. Against Youngstown State, the Buckeyes had 59 kills in 84 attempts with nine errors. OSU started the match against YSU by hitting .909 in game one on 20 kills in 22 attempts with no errors.
GORDON HITS .857 AGAINST YOUNGSTOWN STATE, RANKS SECOND ALL-TIME
After being named the Big Ten and American Volleyball Coaches Association National Player of the Week, Stacey Gordon continued to impress as she hit .857 against Youngstown State for the second best match hitting percentage in Ohio State history. She had 13 kills in 14 attempts with one error. That mark ranks behind Jenny Jackson’s (1992-95) .900 (9-0-10) set at Cincinnati in 1992.
GORDON SETS OHIO STATE MATCH RECORD FOR ACES
With eight ace serves in OSU’s 3-0 win at Temple, Stacey Gordon set an Ohio State match record. Gordon and six others previously held the record at seven aces. They include Gordon (at Minnesota, 2001); Shelly Draeger (Purdue, 2001); Shelly Draeger (Tennessee Tech, 2001); Anne Botica (Illinois State, 2000); Jenny Jackson (Indiana, 1992); Erika Schlitz (vs. Colorado State at Texas A&M, 1988 and Lisa Bettio (Bowling Green, 1983).
GORDON SELECTED TO PRESEASON ALL-BIG TEN TEAM
By a vote of the conference coaches, Stacey Gordon was a unanimous selection to the 2004 Preseason All-Big Ten Team for the third consecutive season. Gordon, a three-time Big Ten all-conference selection was on of three student-athletes that were a unanimous choice by the conference coaches. The others were Kim Schram of Michigan State and Sam Tortorello of Penn State.
BUCKEYES PICKED SIXTH IN THE BIG TEN PRESEASON POLL
In the 2004 coach’s preseason poll, Ohio State was picked to finish in a tie for sixth with Michigan by the Big Ten coaches. Minnesota was tabbed as the preseason favorite to win the conference. Penn State was picked for second with Wisconsin third.
VANESSA WOUTERS IS INDUCTED INTO OSU ATHLETICS HALL OF FAME
Outside hitter Vanessa Wouters was inducted into the Ohio State Athletics Hall Of Fame, Friday, Sept. 10. Wouters played two years (1996-97) for the Buckeyes. A first-team All-American as a junior, Wouters also was the Big Ten Player of the Year and the Ohio State Female Athlete of the Year. For her career at Ohio State, she averaged 5.75 kills and 2.45 digs per game. She holds the Ohio State match record for kills (45) and points (50) and the Buckeye season record for kills (765) and points (867.5). Previous women’s volleyball players in the Hall of Fame include Karen Alsbrook (1977-79), Lisa Bettio (1982-85), Laura Davis (1991-94), Holly O’Leary (1987-90), Mary Ormsby (1977-80) and Leisa Wissler (1988-91).
UP NEXT FOR OHIO STATE
The Buckeyes close out the regular season with road matches at Michigan and Michigan State. OSU faces the Wolverines Friday, Nov. 26 and the Spartans, Saturday Nov. 27. Both matches will begin at 7 p.m. On Sunday, the NCAA will announce the pairings and the sites of the first and second round matches.
