Ohio State
8-1
Syracuse
8-1
Blackbird Invitational Title Capped Off by Topping #13 Arizona – Ohio State Buckeyes
9/12/2015 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Sept. 12, 2015
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BROOKLYN, N.Y. – The No. 15 Ohio State University women’s volleyball program captured its second tournament title in as many weekends, clinching the Blackbird Invitational early Saturday evening by handing No. 13 Arizona (8-1) its first defeat of the season. Ohio State (8-1) bested Syracuse (6-2) earlier in the day.
Buckeye libero Valeria León accumulated 35 digs against the Wildcats in the title-clinching victory. That total is the second highest in school history and the top mark ever for a Buckeye in a four-set match. The historic performance comes just seven days after León registered 32 digs in another top-15 triumph over then-No. 14 Florida State.
For her efforts, which included an overall 6.45 digs per set average for the weekend, León was voted the Tournament’s Most Valuable Player. Buckeye teammates Elizabeth Campbell and Taylor Sandbothe joined her on the All-Blackbird Invitational Team. The same trio earned all-tournament honors at last week’s Sports Imports D.C. Koehl Classic as well. León and Sandbothe have picked up all-tournament recognition in all three tournaments of the 2015 season.
The first three sets versus Arizona all ended in final tallies of 25-22. Ohio State took the first and third frames while the Wildcats came away with the second stanza. Set number four was a wild one featuring 12 tied scores and eight lead changes. Ten different Buckeyes contributed in the final set, led by Tourney MVP León and her nine digs. Senior Katie Mitchell stepped up big as well, putting away five kills at a .385 pace.
Ohio State lead by as many as six points at 12-6, but the Wildcats refused to go away quietly and stormed back to garner the first set-point opportunity of the period at 24-23. The Buckeyes fended off that threat and another trailing 26-25 before ultimately closing it out, 29-27, for their eighth consecutive victory. Tyler Richardson and Campbell delivered back-to-back kills to transform a 27-27 stalemate into the 29-27 winner.
The Buckeyes started Saturday by topping Syracuse in four sets, too. Campbell and Sandbothe combined for 41 kills in that one while León dug 22 balls. Sandbothe got it done defensively as well with eight blocks, including four solo stuffs. Freshman setter Taylor Hughes stuffed the stat sheet with 36 assists and 10 digs, good for her second straight double-double.
Ohio State wasted little time setting the tone in the opening set. The Buckeyes raced out to an 8-2 edge and blew past the Orange 25-12. The two squads then split a pair of 25-23 scores before OSU sealed the deal 25-18 in the fourth.
The Scarlet & Gray exploded for six straight points and it looked be all but over. However, Syracuse was having none of it and snagged seven of the next eight to pull even at 7-7. The ledger remained tied at 9-9 before a 16-9 OSU run brought home the Buckeye triumph.
