Ohio State
22-7, 11-6
Iowa
12-18, 2-15
Appold’s Offensive Onslaught Pushes OSU to Victory at Iowa – Ohio State Buckeyes
11/18/2015 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Nov. 18, 2015
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IOWA CITY, Iowa — Ohio State’s offense churned out 61 kills at a .336 attacking clip in a four-set triumph at Iowa. The Buckeye defense was stout as well, throwing up 13 blocks and digging 52 balls to hold the Hawkeyes at a .168 hitting efficiency. Audra Appold exploded for a career-high 29 kills while swinging .489 (29-6-47) on the night.
Appold’s 29 kills mark the most by a Buckeye since Kaitlyn Leary put away 31 at Michigan on Nov. 2, 2013. The 29 kills are also the highest total by an OSU freshman in over a decade when Stacey Gordon terminated 30 kills at Purdue on Nov. 3, 2001.
Valeria León put forth a historic effort as well, climbing into the all-time top-10 for career digs in school history. The Buckeye libero registered a match-high 18 digs against the Hawkeyes, moving her career total to 1,177 digs. She surpassed Julie Chellevold (1988-91; 1,173 digs) for the 10th slot on the all-time list. Gordon sits atop the career rankings with 1,572 digs.
The incredible individual efforts carried No. 16 Ohio State to its 22nd win of the season, improving to 22-7 overall and 11-7 in Big Ten action. Iowa (12-18, 2-15) suffers its 14th consecutive loss to the Scarlet & Gray.
The Hawkeyes failed to record back-to-back points at any moment in the opening set as Ohio State successfully produced a flawless side-out rate of 100 percent. Each of Iowa’s 14 serves were met with resistance and a subsequent Buckeye tally. The serve-receive dominance laid the groundwork for a 25-14 Buckeye winner. Ohio State concluded the set on a 16-6 run.
Set number two was a defensive scrum with both squads combining for just 29 kills despite the frame extending into extra points. Appold took care of 10 kills alone, the 10th locking the score up at 25-25. Ohio State would fend off a total of four set-point opportunities for Iowa before ultimately falling 28-26.
Taylor Sandbothe got it going following intermission, stuffing the Hawkeyes three times in the third frame. A six-point spurt for OSU powered by three Appold kills turned a 3-3 tie into a 9-3 edge which would go unchallenged the remainder of the 25-19 besting. Fittingly, Appold took the clinching swing and terminated her seventh kill for the final tally.
Despite a large discrepancy in fourth-set team hitting percentages (Ohio State out-hit the Hawkeyes .438 to .184) the final frame was back-and-forth and tied as late as 16-all. From there the Buckeyes would seize nine of the next 13 points, however, and slowly pull away to a 25-20 clincher. Appold dropped in eight more kills for good measure and Tyler Richardson got in on four blocks.
Ohio State takes a short break from competition before returning to the court on Sunday (Nov. 22) for a 2 p.m. ET duel at No. 10 Wisconsin.
