No. 16 Women’s Volleyball Travels to Illinois and Northwestern – Ohio State Buckeyes
10/10/2006 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Oct. 10, 2006
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COLUMBUS, Ohio – No. 16 Ohio State (13-3, Big Ten 3-3) women’s volleyball team takes to the road for the third time in four weeks when they face Illinois (11-5, 2-4) Friday in Huff Hall and Northwestern (8-7, 2-4) Saturday in Welsh-Ryan Arena. Both contests began at 8 p.m. ET. Last week Ohio State, in home matches, defeated No. 13 Wisconsin, 3-2 (28-30, 25-30, 30-27, 30-28, 15-12) and lost to No. 24 Minnesota, 1-3 (30-23, 27-30, 21-30, 28-30).
A LOOK AT OHIO STATE
Head coach Jim Stone is in his 25th season with the 16th-ranked Buckeyes. Ohio State has a 13-3 overall record and is 3-3 in the Big Ten. Last week Ohio State, in home matches, defeated No. 13 Wisconsin, 3-2 (28-30, 25-30, 30-27, 30-28, 15-12) and lost to No. 24 Minnesota, 1-3 (30-23, 27-30, 21-30, 28-30).
Leading Ohio State in kills per game is Danielle Meyer (6-1, Jr., Cincinnati, Ohio) with a 5.04 average. Anna Szerszen (Fr., Conflans Ste Hne, France) ranks second at 4.43 with Briana McCarthy (Jr., Beaver Dam, Wis.) third at 2.74. OSU’s top percentage hitter is McCarthy at .380. Setter Marisa Main (5-9, Sr., Louisville, Ky.) is averaging 13.05 assists per game. Ami Stevens (Jr., Centerburg, Ohio) is averaging a team-high .41 aces per game with 24. Meyer ranks second at .37 with 21 and McCarthy is third at .34 with 20. Defensively, Stevens leads the team with a 3.74 digs per game average. Meyer ranks second at 2.56 with Ashley Kiel (Sr., Allenton, Wis.) third at 2.07. At the net Kristen Dozier (Fr., Sandy Spring, Md.) has a team-high 1.12 blocks per game average. She has five solos and 60 assist blocks. Meghan Simons (Fr. Carroll, Ohio) ranks second at .94 with 29 assists with McCarthy third at .74 with two solos and 41 assists. As a team, OSU is averaging 16.47 kills and 15.19 assists per game while hitting .298. The Buckeyes average 1.90 aces, 14.53 digs and 2.28 blocks per game. Opponents average 12.52 kills and 11.45 assists per game while hitting .170. OSU opponents average 1.02 aces, 12.29 digs and 2.27 blocks per game.
A LOOK AT ILLINOIS
Head coach Don Hardin is in his 11th season with the Illini. Illinois is 11-5 overall and 2-4 in the Big Ten. The Illini lost road matches last week at Michigan State, 0-3 (25-30, 22-30, 31-33) and at Michigan, 1-3 (24-30, 26-30, 30-24, 23-30).
The top Illinois hitter is Kayani Turner with a 4.91 kills per game average. Vicki Brown ranks second at 3.88 with Stephanie Alde third at 2.76. Brown is the top percentage hitter on the squad at .386 with Meghan Macdonald second at .308. At Setter, Lizzie Bazzetta is averaging 13.77 assists per game. Amy Palash has a team-high .42 aces per game average with 24 ace serves. Bazzetta ranks second at .35 with 20 aces. Defensively, Ashley Edinger leads the team in digs per game with a 4.91 average. Bazzetta ranks second at 2.56. At the net, Brown has a team-high 1.41 blocks per game average with 14 solos and 51 assists. Macdonald ranks second at .98 with seven solos and 43 assists. Illinois is averaging 16.12 kills and 15.02 assists per game while hitting .231. The Illini is averaging 2.19 aces, 15.19 digs and 2.32 blocks per game. Opponents average 13.40 kills and 12.16 assists and are hitting .186. Illini opponents average 1.21 aces, 13.79 digs and 2.18 blocks per game.
OHIO STATE SERIES VS. ILLINOIS
Ohio State leads the series with Illinois, 31-28. In Champaign, the Illini have a 14-12 advantage. Last season, OSU lost 2-3 (30-27, 30-21, 3032, 24-30, 18-20) in Columbus and won 3-0 (30-24, 30-27, 30-26) at Illinois.
A LOOK AT NORTHWESTERN
Head coach Keylor Chan is in his seventh season with the Wildcats. Northwestern has an 8-7 overall record and is 2-4 in the Big Ten. The Wildcats split road matches last week, losing at Michigan, 0-3 (28-30, 25-30, 28-30) and winning, 3-2 (19-30, 30-21, 27-30, 30-26, 15-11) at Michigan State.
Wildcat Lindsay Anderson leads the team with a 3.39 kills per game average. Courtnie Paulus ranks second at 2.64. Chelsy Hyser has a team-high .349 hitting percentage with Brittney Aldridge second at .283. At setter, Stephanie Jurivich is averaging 11.15 assists per game. Anderson has a team-high .43 aces per game average with 23 ace serves. Paulus ranks second at .36 with 20. Defensively, Kate Nobilio leads the team with a 5.11 digs per game average. Paulus ranks second at 2.58. At the net, Hyser and Aldridge are each averaging .96 blocks per game. Hyser has seven solos and 44 assist blocks while Aldridge has seven solos and 42 assists blocks. Northwestern is averaging 14.89 kills and 13.75 assists per game and is hitting .218. The Wildcats average 1.53 aces, 16.13 digs and 2.55 blocks per game. Opponents average 14.25 kills and 13.38 assists while hitting .186. Wildcat opponents average 1.51 aces, 16.29 digs and 2.50 blocks per game.
OHIO STATE SERIES VS. NORTHWESTERN
Ohio State has a 40-15 lead in the series with Northwestern. In Evanston, Ohio State is 15-8. The Buckeyes have won the last four meetings with the Wildcats. Last season, Ohio State won 3-2 (25-30, 30-21, 24-30, 30-21, 15-10) in Evanston and 3-1 (31-33, 30-28, 30-25, 30-20) in Columbus.
BUCKEYE HAVE SECOND 0-2 COME-FROM-BEHIND VICTORY IN THREE YEARS
Ohio State’s come-from-behind victory over Wisconsin was the second time in three years that the Buckeyes rallied to win after trailing 0-2 in a match. In 2004 in the NCAA regional semifinals at Minnesota, the Buckeyes lost the first two games, 29-31, 27-30, to Tennessee before winning the next three games, 30-16, 30-26, 15-12 to advance to the regional championship match against Minnesota. Ohio State lost that match, 2-3.
SZERSZEN HAS THIRD 20-PLUS KILL MATCH
Ana Szerszen had 20 kills against Minnesota for her third 20-plus kill match of the season. She has posted double-figure kills in all eight matches she has played in since arriving from France. Szerszen added three digs and two block assists in the match. Against Wisconsin, she had 17 kills, eight digs, a solo block and two assists. In her eight starts, Szerszen is averaging 4.43 kills, 1.60 digs and 4.93 points per game.
McCARTHY IS OSU’S TOP PERCENTAGE HITTER
Briana McCarthy is hitting .380 on the season and is Ohio State’s top percentage hitter on the squad. She hit .486 with 20 kills (3 errors, 35 attempts) against Wisconsin, adding an ace serve, nine digs and four assist blocks. Against Minnesota, McCarthy hit .174 with 10 kills (6 errors, 23 attempts) with an ace serve, three digs and an assist block coming off the bench. She has started 15 of 16 matches and is averaging 3.47 points, 2.74 kills, .34 aces, 1.28 digs and .74 blocks per game.
McCARTHY NOW 14TH IN OSU CAREER ASSIST AND TOTAL BLOCKS
Briana McCarthy, with five assist blocks last week, has moved to 14th on the OSU career list with 218, passing Margie Meyers (1984-87) with 215. McCarthy needs five assist blocks to pass No. 13 Kristi Neuman (1983-86) with 222. In career total blocks, McCarthy now has 247 with 29 solos and 218 assists. She is now 14th, passing Katie Virtue (1999-02) with 244 (17-227). McCarthy needs four total blocks to move pass No. 13 Sara Daniel (1991-94) with 250 (20-230).
MEYER HAS BACK-TO-BACK DOUBLE-FIGURE KILL-DIG MATCHES
Danielle Meyer had double-figure kills and digs in both matches last week. She had 25 kills and 15 digs against Wisconsin, adding an ace serve and three assist blocks and 11 kills and 10 digs against Minnesota with an ace serve and two assist blocks. She has had seven double-doubles this season and has had double figure kills in 15 of 16 matches including the last 11. Meyer, on the season, is averaging 5.73 points, 5.04 kills, .37 aces, 2.56 digs and .56 blocks per game.
MEYER MOVES TO EIGHTH IN OSU CAREER ASSIST BLOCKS
Danielle Meyer had five assist blocks last weekend with three against Wisconsin and two in the Minnesota match. Those five blocks gives has 247 career assist blocks and has moved her to eighth on the OSU career list. She passed Jen Flynn (1996-99) with 242 and Sherri Rinker (1984-87) with 246. Meyer need four assist blocks to move to seventh on the list and would pass Gabriele Jobst (1991-94) with 260.
MEYER TIES FOR TENTH IN OSU CAREER TOTAL BLOCKS
Danielle Meyer, with her five assist blocks from last weekend now has 277 career total blocks with 30 solos and 247 assists. She has moved into a tie for 10th on the OSU career list with Gabriele Jobst (1991-94) (17-260). She passed Jen Flynn (1996-99) with 274 (32-242). Meyer needs 16 total blocks to move to ninth, currently held by Margie Meyers (1984-87) with 292 (77-215).
MEYER MOVES TO 14TH IN OSU CAREER POINTS
Danielle Meyer, with 40.5 points last week, now has 1,364.5 career points, and has moved to 14th on the OSU career points list. She has passed Sherri Helman (1993-96) with 1,254.0 and Anne Botica (1998-01) with 1,351.5. Meyer needs 27 points to pass No. 13 Tricia Stragliotto (1993-95) who has 1,390.5 points.
MAIN NEARING 4,000 OSU ASSISTS
Marisa Main, in her three seasons at Ohio State has 3,947 career assists and needs 53 to reach 4,000. Including her season at Xavier, she has 4,893 career assists. Main had 69 assists against Wisconsin, adding 11 digs and two assist blocks. Against Minnesota, she had 49 assists, an ace serve, five digs and three assist blocks. For the season, Main is averaging 13.05 assists, 1.40 kills, 1.86 digs and .47 blocks per game.
MAIN TIED FOR 24TH IN OSU CAREER ASSIST BLOCKS
Marisa Main, with five assist blocks last weekend, has tied for 24th in Ohio State career assist blocks with 142. She is tied with Andrea Pankova (1995-97). Main need seven total blocks to move past No. 23 Brianne Spiers (1995-96, 98-99) who has 148.
DOZIER IS TOP OSU BLOCKER
Kristen Dozier is Ohio State’s top blocker this season with a 1.12 per game average. She has five solos and 60 assists. Against Wisconsin, Dozier had five assists blocks adding two kills and a dig. She had four assist blocks against Minnesota, adding seven kills. On the season, Dozier is averaging 2.53 points, 1.67 kills and 1.12 blocks per game.
JONES HAS SEASON-HIGH NINE KILLS AGAINST WISCONSIN
Felicia Jones (Sr., Concord, Ont.) had a season-high nine kills against Wisconsin adding two digs and four assist blocks. Her previous best this season was six in three matches. Against Minnesota, Jones had eight kills and two assist blocks. She has started the last five matches and has played in 14 this season. She is averaging 1.89 points, 1.58 kills and .61 blocks per game.
STEVENS EQUALS HER SEASON-HIGH OF 26 DIGS
Ami Stevens had 26 digs against Wisconsin to equal her season high set at Iowa. She contributed 23 digs in the Minnesota match and added two ace serves. Stevens has had double-figure digs in 10 matches this season including her last five matches. She has had 23 or more digs in four of the last five matches. In reception attempts, Stevens handled 69 of 70 against Wisconsin and 41 of 45 against Minnesota. She has started at libero the last eight matches and is averaging a team-high 3.74 digs (217) and .41 aces (24) per game. She has a .956 reception percentage, handling 591 of 614 attempts.
STEVENS IS 22ND IN OSU CAREER DIGS
Ami Stevens had 49 digs last week and has 874 career digs with Ohio State. She ranks 22nd on the OSU career digs list, passing Audrey DiPronio (1988-90) with 850. Ahead of Stevens on the list is No. 21 Katie Virtue (1999-02) with 885 and No. 20 Anne Botica (1998-01) with 893.
KIEL PLAYING DEFENSIVE SPECIALIST ROLE
Ashley Kiel played in all nine games last week and started against Minnesota as a defensive specialist. She had 10 digs in that match for her fourth double-figure dig match of the season. Against Wisconsin, she had eight digs. Kiel has played in all 16 matches, with five earlier starts at libero. She is averaging 2.07 digs per game and has recorded nine ace serves.
BUCKEYES HAVE TWO-.500-PLUS HITTING MATCHES
Ohio State hit a .513 percentage against Iona and a .521 against Lehigh. The .521 mark ranks third and the .513 mark ranks fourth on the Ohio State match records list. At the Towson Invitational, the Buckeyes hit .489 against Robert Morris which now ranks seventh.
OSU RANKED 16TH IN THE CSTV/AVCA COACHES POLL
The CSTV (College Sports Television/AVCA (American Volleyball Coaches Association) 2006 Division I Coaches Top 25 Poll has Ohio State ranked 16th this week. OSU was ranked 14th last week and began the season at 23rd. The Buckeyes are one of five Big Ten squads ranked in the CSTV/AVCA Poll. Others include Penn State second, Purdue ninth, Wisconsin 14th and Minnesota 23rd.
THREE NAMED TO BIG TEN PRESEASON ALL-BIG TEN TEAM
Three Ohio State players named to the 12-player 2006 Preseason All-Big Ten Volleyball Team, announced by the conference office. Setter Marisa Main and outside hitter Ami Stevens earned their second-straight preseason selection with middle blocker Danielle Meyer earning her first selection.
Main is a two-time All-Big Ten selection and was named to the 2005 Preseason All-Big Ten Team. Last season, she averaged 12.78 assists, 2.08 kills and 2.30 digs per game while hitting .388 in conference play. Main is a two-time American Volleyball Coaches Association second-team All-American selection.
Stevens was a 2005 Preseason All-Big Ten selection. Last season she averaged 3.44 kills and 2.71 digs while hitting .230 in conference play. She has played for USA Volleyball the last three years as a member of the United States Junior National team in 2004 and 2005 and with the USA National A-2 Team in 2006.
Meyer was a 2005 All-Big Ten selection. She averaged 4.11 kill, 2.48 digs and 1.14 blocks per game while hitting .260 in conference play. Meyer was a 2005 AVCA third-team All-American.
OHIO STATE PICKED TO FINISHED FOURTH IN THE BIG TEN PRESEASON POLL
Ohio State, by a vote of the Big Ten conference coaches, was picked to finish fourth in the league by a vote of the conference coaches. The Buckeyes finished in a tie for third with Minnesota in 2005. The Gophers were picked to finish third, with Wisconsin second and three-time defending Big Ten Champion Penn State chosen to repeat.
OSU HAS THREE TELEVISED MATCHES
Ohio State will have three matches televised as part of a 14-match lineup announced by the Big Ten Conference Thursday. The Buckeyes will appear in two national and one regional cable telecasts. OSU’s television schedule will open with a live telecast at Penn State, Wednesday, Sept. 20 at 8 p.m. ET on College Sports Television (CSTV). The Buckeyes will then appear in the first of three Big Ten-ESPN2 matches at Purdue, Friday, Sept. 29. The Purdue match will be shown, Sunday, Oct. 1 at 2:30 p.m. ET. Ohio State’s third televised match will be at Minnesota, Friday, Oct. 27 on Comcast SportsNet Chicago (CSN Chicago). The Minnesota match will be broadcast Saturday, Oct. 28 at 1 p.m. ET.
The Big Ten Conference will have six national and eight regional televised matches this season. CSTV and ESPN will have three matches each and CSN Chicago with broadcast eight contests including a wildcard match the final weekend of the season.
For more than a decade, the Big Ten has been a leader in collegiate volleyball television exposure. The conference enters its 12th-consecutive year of partnership with ESPN2 in which at least three matches will be telecast.
HEAD COACH JIM STONE
Jim Stone enters his 25th season at Ohio State. He has a 504-271 record with the Buckeyes and is 278-158 in Big Ten play. His squads have won Big Ten Championships in 1989, 1991 and 1994 and finished tied for second in 2004 being named the Big Ten Coach of the Year. He was the 1991 Volleyball Monthly National Coach of the Year and the Big Ten Coach of the Year in 1989, 1991, 1994 and 2004. Under Stone, Ohio State has participated in the NCAA championship in 14 of the last 17 years, advancing to the national semifinals in 1991 and 1994. Stone’s coaching career record includes three years at Wyoming (1979-1981). His 28-year career record is 554-313.
MEET THE BUCKEYES
#1 Meghan Simons (Middle Blocker, 6-3, Fr., Carroll, Ohio) – 2006 played in 11 matches, starting 10 – nine kills against Robert Morris and Houston – hit a career-high .667 (9-1-12) against Houston – season-high five assist blocks at Towson.
#2 Brittany Dahms (Libero/Defensive Specialist, 5-5, Jr., Bryon, Ill.) – 2006 played in two matches – missed the first 10 matches of the season – two digs at Penn State – 2005 played in 29 matches with two starts at defensive specialist and 22 at libero – named to the Academic All-Big Ten squad – season-high 25 digs at Cleveland State 2004 started seven matches at libero and three as a defensive specialist – averaged 2.23 digs per game with a career-high 19 against Michigan – double-figure digs in 10 matches.
#3 Anna Tengnas (Libero/Defensive Specialist, 5-5, Sr., Hyletbruk, Sweden) – 2006 played in 14 matches – season-high 11 digs against Arizona State – 2005 has played in 15 matches with four starts at libero – named to the Academic All-Big Ten squad – 2004 played in 16 matches with three starts at libero – averaged 1.43 digs per game in 2004 with a season-high of nine against Dayton and North Carolina.
#5 Lindsay Schad (Libero/Defensive Specialist, 5-4, Fr., St. Louis, Mo.) – 2006 played in seven matches, starting three at libero – double-figure digs against Houston with 12 and Towson with 13.
#6 Danielle Meyer (Outside Hitter, 6-1, Jr., Cincinnati, Ohio) – 2006 started 16 matches – became the 16th player to reach 1,000 kills against IPFW – has 1,140 career kills, ranking 14th – named the Most Outstanding Player of the Sports Imports Classic – named the Most Valuable Player of the Towson Invitational – named the Big Ten Player of the Week for her play at the Towson Invitational – career-high 32 kills at Towson – season-high 17 digs at Iowa – back-to-back 30-plus kill matches against Houston (30) and Towson (32) – added her third 30-kill match at Iowa – preseason All-Big Ten selection – career-high five aces against Tennessee Tech – double-figure kills in 15 matches, double-figure digs in seven matches 2005 a third-team AVCA All-American – All-Big Ten – a second team ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District selection – named to the Academic All-Big Ten squad – started all 31 matches – ranked fourth in the Big Ten in kills per game at 4.11 – career-high 29 kills at Cleveland State – career-high 31 points at Bowling Green – career-high 19 digs at Indiana – tied her career-high nine blocks at Iowa (1-8) and at Purdue (2-7) – equaled her career-high of four aces at Northwestern – 25 matches with double-figure kills – nine matches with 21 or more kills – 11 matches with double-figure digs – named to the Buckeye Classic All-Tournament Team – named to the Bowling Green Invitational All-Tournament Team 2004 started all 34 matches – averaged 2.91 kills, .75 digs and 1.10 blocks per game – career-high nine blocks against Illinois – USA National experience includes the Youth National Team in 2003.
#7 Ami Stevens (Outside Hitter, 6-1, Jr., Centerburg, Ohio) – 2006 played in 16 matches, starting eight matches with eight starts at libero – season-high 14 kills against Iona – double-figure kills in six matches – double-figure digs in 10 matches including the last five – season-high 26 digs at Iowa and against Wisconsin – 23 or more digs in four of the last five matches – preseason All-Big Ten Selection – 2005 a third team ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District selection – started and played in 29 matches – named to the Academic All-Big Ten squad – career-highs of 26 kills at Bowling Green – career-high 28.5 points at Northwestern – season-high .500 (13-0-26) hitting percentage at Michigan – ranked 10th in the Big Ten in kills per game at 3.44 – season-high 22 digs against Brigham Young – double-figure kills in 20 matches – double-figure digs in 15 matches – Ohio State Athlete of the Week for her play at Wisconsin and Northwestern – 2005 Preseason All-Big Ten Selection – named to the Buckeye Classic All-Tournament Team named to the Bowling Green Invitational All-Tournament Team 2004 started all 34 matches – named to the All-Big Ten Freshman Team – averaged 2.78 kills, 3.02 digs and .43 blocks per game – career-high 17 kills against Northwestern and vs. Tennessee in the NCAA Regional Semifinals – career-high 27 digs vs. Tennessee – double-figure kills in 18 matches – double-figure digs in 16 matches – USA National experience includes the Junior National Team in 2004 and 2005.
#8 Briana McCarthy (Outside hitter, 6-2, Sr./Jr., Beaver Dam, Wis.) 2006 played in all 16 matches with 15 starts – career-high 22 kills at Purdue – double-figure kills in nine matches including the last five – season-high 10 digs at Iowa – season-high five assists at Purdue – career-high 25 points at Purdue – 2005 did not play – named to the Academic All-Big Ten squad – 2004 started 26 matches – averaged 1.33 kills, .58 digs and .88 blocks per game – 2003 started 26 matches at setter and two at outside hitter in – averaged 11.53 assists per game with a career-high 66 assists against Temple.
#9 Felicia Jones (Outside Hitter, 5-11, Sr., Concord, Ontario/Southwest Missouri State-West Plains) 2006 played in 14 matches, starting six – season-high nine kills against Wisconsin – career-high six assist blocks at Indiana – 2005 played in 25 matches, starting 16 – career-high four digs at Penn State – career-high 13 kills at Illinois and at Michigan State – hit a career-high .421 (9-1-19) at Penn State – career-high 15 points at Michigan State – career-high four blocks (1-3) against Marshall 2003-04 played two years at Southwest Missouri State-West Plains Junior College – first team American Volleyball Coaches Association Junior College All-American and a National Junior College Athletic Association All-American in 2004 – averaged 4.12 kills, 3.68 digs and .33 blocks per game in 2004 – a second-team AVCA and NJCAA JC All-American – career-highs of 23 kills against Southern Idaho in 2003 and 27 digs against Tennessee in 2004.
#11 Ashley Hughes (Setter, 5-11, Fr., Carroll, Ohio) – 2006 played in four matches – career-high six assists at Youngstown State – career-high two digs against Lehigh.
#12 Kristen Dozier (Middle Blocker, 6-2, Fr., Sandy Spring, Md.) – 2006 started 16 matches – career-high 11 kills against Iona – career-high 13 assist blocks against Houston to set an OSU match record for assist blocks and tied the OSU record for total blocks – hit a career-high .750 (10-1-12) against Lehigh – career-high five digs against Houston – career-high three ace serves against Iona – double-figure kills in three matches.
#13 Marisa Main (Setter, 5-9, Sr., Louisville, Ky./Xavier) – 2006 started all 16 matches – season-high nine kills at Purdue – season-high 71 assists at Iowa – season-high 12 digs at Towson – double-figure digs in three matches – season-high six assist blocks against Houston – honored as the Best Setter in the Sports Imports Classic – preseason All-Big Ten selection – 2005 An AVCA second-team All-American – All-Big Ten – a third team ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District selection – started all 31 matches – named to the Academic All-Big Ten squad – named the Sports Imports/AVCA Division I National Player of the Week and the Big Ten Player of the Week for her play at No. 12 Wisconsin and at Iowa – named the Big Ten Player of the Week for her play against Michigan State and Michigan – season-high 70 assists against Purdue – season-high of 14 kills at Cleveland State – career-high 22 digs against Purdue – season-high 16 points at Michigan State – has five triple-doubles this season – 14 kills, 54 assists, 14 digs at Cleveland State – 11 kills, 47 assists and 10 digs against Michigan – 12 kills, 37 assists and 13 digs at Minnesota – 10 kills, 60 assists and 10 digs at Iowa – 12 kills, 42 assists and 15 digs against Northwestern- hit a season-high .786 against Michigan – eight matches with double-figure kills and 13 matches with double-figure digs – finished second in hitting percentage in the Big Ten at .398 and was third in assists per game at 12.78 – twice named the Ohio State Athlete of the Week – 2005 Preseason All-Big Ten Selection 2004 second-team AVCA All-American – first team AVCA Mideast All-Region – All-Big Ten – started 34 matches in 2004 averaging 14.88 assists, 2.35 digs and .46 blocks per game – career-high 85 assists against Tennessee in the NCAA Regional Semifinals in Minneapolis – Ohio State season assist leader with 1,785 – Big Ten statistical champion at 14.68 assists per game and finished second nationally in NCAA statistics at 14.88 – double-figure digs in 13 matches 2003 played at Xavier University – named to the Atlantic-10 All-Conference and All-Rookie teams.
#14 Anna Szerszen (Outside Hitter, 6-3, Fr., Conflans Ste Hne, France) – 2006 Played and started in eight matches – career-high 25 kills at Iowa – double-figure kills in eight matches – career-high .440 hitting percentage against IPFW – career-high 10 digs at Iowa – has three 20-plus kill matches including 23 at Purdue and 20 against Minnesota – arrived in Columbus, September 8 after playing for France in the European Junior National Championship.
#15 Ashley Kiel (Outside Hitter, 5-11, Sr., Allenton, Wis./Northern Michigan) 2006 played in 16 matches, starting five at libero and one at defensive specialist – season-high 12 digs against Arizona State – season-high four ace serves against Iona, part of a string of 18 consecutive points she served in game one – double-figure digs in three matches – 2005 played in 31 matches, starting 29 and had one start at libero – season-high 17 kills against Purdue – hit a career-high .600 (7-1-10) against Marshall – season-high 20 digs at Indiana – season-high seven total blocks (1-6) at Michigan State – six matches with double-figure kills and 12 matches with double-figure digs 2003-04 played two seasons at Division II Northern Michigan – 2004 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference All-Conference Selection – averaged 2.58 kills, 3.24 digs and 1.10 blocks per game in 2004 – career-high 23 kills at Ashland in 2004 – career-high 26 digs at Hillsdale in 2004 – second team GLIAC All-Conference selection in 2003 – named the 2003 AVCA Great Lakes Region Freshman of the Year – 2003 Great Lakes All-Region honorable mention selection.
REVIEWING LAST WEEK
OHIO STATE 3, WISCONSIN 2
The 14th ranked Ohio State (13-2, 3-2 Big Ten) women’s volleyball team rallied from a Wisconsin (12-3, 4-1) 2-0 lead to win, 3-2, (28-30, 25-30, 30-27, 30-28, 15-12) Friday night in St. John Arena. Ohio State’s Danielle Meyer scored a co-match high of 27.5 points with Briana McCarthy adding 23 and Anna Szerszen 20. Meyer had 25 kills, an ace serve and three assist blocks. McCarthy had 20 kills, an ace serve and four assist blocks while Szerszen recorded 17 kills, one ace serve a solo block and two assists. 13th-ranked Wisconsin’s Brittney Dolgner had 27.5 points in the match with Audra Jeffers adding 18 and Taylor Reineke, 16.5. Dolgner posted 25 kills, an ace serve and three assist blocks. Jeffers had 15 kills, a solo block and four assists and Reineke added 10 kill, an ace serve, two solo blocks and seven assists.
Game one had 15 ties and four lead changes. Wisconsin took the early lead at 5-3 off an OSU error and a Jackie Simpson kill. A Badger error and a Szerszen ace serve tied the game at five. A Dolgner kill with a Buckeye error gave Wisconsin a 7-5 lead. At 11-9, a Meyer kill cut the lead to 11-10. A Reineke kill and an OSU error gave the Badgers a 13-10 lead. An Amy Bladow kill opened the lead to four at 16-12. A Felicia Jones kill, two Wisconsin errors and a McCarthy kill tied the game at 16. At 24-all, a Wisconsin error gave Ohio State a 25-24 lead. A Maria Carlini kill tied the game at 25. An OSU error and a solo block by Jeffers made it 27-25. A McCarthy kill and a Badger error tied the game at 27. Kills by Bladow and McCarthy made it 28-28. Wisconsin kills by Jeffers and Reineke closed out the game at 30-28 for Wisconsin. The Badgers hit .231 for the game to .195 for Ohio State.
Wisconsin opened game two with a kill from Bladow, a Carlini ace serve and a Jeffers kill for a 3-0 lead. The Badgers opened the lead to four at 9-5 and to five at 15-10. A Badger error and a kill and solo block by Szerszen cut the lead to 15-13. Wisconsin kills by Reineke and Dolgner and one by OSU’s Jones made it 17-14, Badgers. A Wisconsin error, a McCarthy ace serve and a Marisa Main – Kristen Dozier block tied the game at 17. The Buckeyes took a 19-17 lead off two Wisconsin error. A Reineke kill and an OSU error tied the game at 19. Tied at 23, the Badgers scored five straight points with a Reineke kill, a Reieke-Simpson block, two OSU errors and a Dolgner kill to lead 28-23. McCarthy, with a kill, made it 28-24. A Simpson kill set game point at 29-24. The Buckeye stopped the first game point with a Szerszen kill, but a Reineke kill ended the game at 30-25, Badgers, for a 2-0 lead in the match. Wisconsin hit .292 for the game to .156 for Ohio State.
Ohio State opened game three with kills from Szerszen and McCarthy and a Meyer ace serve for a 3-0 lead. The Buckeyes took the lead to five at 7-2. The Badgers slowly cut into the lead and trailed 19-17 when a Bladow kill and a triple block by Jeffers, Reineke and Dolgner tied the game at 19. At 21-all, a Dolgner ace serve put Wisconsin up, 22-21. Buckeye kills by Main and Jones, an Anna Tengnas ace serve and a Wisconsin error gave Ohio State a 25-22 lead. At 26-23, Wisconsin kills by Bladow and Jeffers cut the OSU lead to one at 26-25. At 28-27, a Meyer kill set game point at 29-27. A Badger error ended the game for a 30-27 Ohio State win, cutting the Wisconsin lead in the match to 2-1. Ohio State hit .319 for the game to .263 for Wisconsin.
Three Wisconsin errors and an OSU block by McCarthy and Jones opened a 4-0 Ohio State lead in game four. At 12-7, OSU, a Badger kill by Dolgner, two from Jeffers and an OSU error cut the lead to one at 12-11. At 15-14, a Wisconsin error and kills by Main and Meyer made the lead four at 18-14. A 5-3 Wisconsin run cut the Ohio State lead to 21-19. At 23-21, a Reineke kill and an OSU error tied the game at 23. Tied at 24, a Simpson kill gave Wisconsin a 25-24 lead. The squads exchanged points to 28-27, Wisconsin when a McCarthy kill tied the game at 28. A Wisconsin error set game point at 29-28 and a Dozier-McCarthy block won the game, 30-28 for the Buckeyes, tying the match at two games each. Ohio State hit .237 in the game to .123 for Wisconsin.
Game five opened with Ohio State kills by Jones and McCarthy and a Szerszen-Jones block for a 3-0 lead. Wisconsin, with a Dolgner kill and a Reineke-Dolgner block cut the lead to 3-2. Kills by Szerszen and Simpson moved the score to 4-3. Two kills from Meyer gave OSU a 6-3 lead. Wisconsin responded with a block by Reineke and Simpson and a solo block by Bladow and with a Carlini kill tied the game at six. Tied at nine, Badger kills by Jeffers and Dolgner gave Wisconsin an 11-9 lead. OSU responded with kills from Szerszen and McCarthy to tie the game at 11. Errors by both team moved the score to 12-12. A Szerszen kill gave OSU a 13-12 lead. A Badger error set match point at 14-12. Ohio State closed out the game with a Dozier-McCarthy block to win the game, 15-12 and take the match 3-2. The Buckeyes hit .231 for the game to .067 for Wisconsin.
For the match, Ohio State hit .228 to .198 for Wisconsin. The Badgers had a 77 to 75 margin in kills and a five to four advantage in ace serves. Defensively, the Buckeyes had an 81-76 advantage in digs with OSU’s Ami Stevens collecting a match-high 23. At the net, Wisconsin had a 16.5 to 11 margin in team blocks. Reineke for the Badgers had a match-high nine blocks with two solos and seven assists. OSU’s Main collected a match-high 69 assists in the match with Wisconsin’s Simpson recording 66.
MINNESOTA 3, OHIO STATE 1
The 14th ranked Ohio State (13-3, 3-3 Big Ten) women’s volleyball team dropped a 1-3 (30-23, 27-30, 21-30, 28-30) decision to No. 24 Minnesota (11-5, 5-1 Big Ten) Sunday afternoon in St. John Arena. Ohio State’s Anna Szerszen scored match-high 21 points in the match with Minnesota’s Meredith Nelson recording a team-high 18.5. Szerszen posted a match-high 20 kills and added two assist blocks. Nelson had 13 kills, three ace serve, a solo block and three assist blocks.
Tied a 4-4 in game one, Ohio State had a nine-to-one run to open a 13-5 lead. The run included three Szerszen kills, a Kristen Dozier kill, a Szerszen-Felicia Jones block, aces by Danielle Meyer and Ami Stevens and two Minnesota errors. The Gophers were unable to cut into the lead and OSU had game point at 29-22 from a Minnesota error. After a Nelson kill made it 29-23, a Szerszen kill ended the game at 30-23. Ohio State hit .190 for the game to .184 for Minnesota.
Ohio State broke an eight-eight tied with a Minnesota error and a Dozier-Marisa Main block for a 10-8 lead. At 11-9, kills from Kelly Bowman and Katie Vatterrodt tied the game at 11 and Minnesota took a 12-11 lead with a Nelson kill. Buckeye kills from Jones and Meyer and two Gopher errors put OSU ahead, 15-12. Minnesota then had a six-two scoring run to take a 19-17 lead. Two kills from Szerszen tied the game at 19. At 25-all, a Bowman-Jessy Jones block and a Christine Tan ace serve gave Minnesota a 27-25 lead. Two Gopher errors tied the game at 27. Back-to back kills by Bowman set game point for Minnesota at 29-27. An ace serve by Malama Peniata gave Minnesota a 30-27 win in the game to tie the match at one game each. The Gophers hit .225 to .175 for OSU.
Tied at one in game three, two OSU errors, a Peniata ace serve and a Nelson kill opened a 5-1 Minnesota lead. OSU cut the lead to two several times, but a 12-10, two Buckeye errors and a Bowman ace serve gave the Gophers a 15-10 lead. At 17-12, a four-point Minnesota run opened a 21-12 lead. Ohio State could not cut the lead and Minnesota reached game point at 29-19 with a Meghan Cumpston kill. A Gopher error and a Stevens’ ace serve cut the margin to 29-21, but a Nelson kill ended the game at 30-21. Minnesota hit .346 for the game to .065 for Ohio State.
Ohio State held a 4-3 lead in game four before two Buckeye errors and a Cumpston ace serve made it 6-4, Minnesota. The Buckeyes cut the lead to one at 9-8, but five straight Gopher point made it 14-8. After a Jones kill made it 14-9, the Gophers had a six-one run to take a 20-10 lead. A Jones-Briana McCarthy block, a McCarthy kill and two Minnesota errors cut the lead to 20-14. Errors moved the score to 21-15. A Nelson kill made it 22-15. A block by Main and Dozier and a Gopher error made it 22-17. Peniata made it 23-17 with a kill. Two Gopher errors made it 23-19. Kills by Bowman and Szerszen moved the score to 24-20. Gopher solo blocks by Jones and Rachel Hartmann made it 26-20. Buckeye kills from Meyer and McCarthy and a Gopher error made it 26-23. Two kills from McCarthy and one from Meyer cut the Minnesota lead to one at 27-26. A Buckeye error and a Kyla Roehrig kill set match point for Minnesota at 29-26. A Szerszen kill made it 29-27 for Minnesota’s second match point. A Szerszen-Dozier block made it 29-28. A Roehrig kill closed out the game at 30-28 for a 3-1 Minnesota victory. Ohio State hit .209 for the game to .167 for the Gophers.
For the match, Minnesota hit .217 to .167 for Ohio State. The Gophers had a 59-58 margin in kills and a nine to five advantage in ace serves. The Gophers gave up 13 service errors to 10 for the Buckeyes. Defensively, Ohio State had a 56-54 edge in digs with OSU’s Stevens recording a match-high 23. At the net, Minnesota had a 13 to seven advantage in team blocks. Sharing match-high honors with five blocks each were Minnesota’s Jones (2-3) and Roehrig (1-4). OSU’s Main posted a match-high 49 assists while Hartmann had 47.
