Ohio State
Michigan State
Buckeyes Sweep Spartans on Sunday
10/14/2018 3:19:34 PM | Women's Volleyball
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COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio State women’s volleyball team picked up its sixth sweep of the season when it took down Michigan State in straight sets (25-23, 25-19, 28-26) Sunday on ESPN2. The Buckeyes improve to 12-8 overall and 3-5 in the Big Ten while the Spartans drop to 15-6 overall and 3-5 in conference play.
Bia Franklin did a little bit of everything for the Buckeyes behind career highs in kills (14) and points (18.5). She also registered 12 digs, three service aces and two blocks. Madison Smeathers came through with a season-best 13 kills while Vanja Bukilic notched her 16th match in double figures on 10 kills. Jordan Fry and Lauren Witte added six and five kills, respectively.
Becca Mauer reached double-digits in assists for the 11th time after she handed out a match-high 43 helpers. Audra Appold recorded 11 digs, followed by Hannah Gruensfelder with eight.
SET 1: The Buckeyes and Spartans traded points to open the match. Franklin’s solo rejection and Gruensfelder’s ace started to give Ohio State some distance, 15-13. Michigan State tied the score at 17-all but OSU used a 4-1 run to force a timeout with a 21-18 lead. The Spartans refused to give up as they pulled within one but Franklin put the ball down hard to seal the set, 25-23.
SET 2: MSU needed a break early after falling behind 6-2. The Spartans burned their second timeout with Ohio State up 16-9. The visitors chipped away at the deficit but it was not enough as the Buckeyes claimed a 25-19 winner.
SET 3: Ohio State jumped out to a 9-4 advantage to start the frame. Michigan State stayed in the set as the Buckeyes called for time at the 17-13 mark. The Spartans managed to erase OSU’s lead and tie things up at 22-all. The teams exchanged the next eight points until a strong swing by Smeathers and a Witte-Smeathers block clinched a 28-26 decision.
UP NEXT
The Buckeyes hit the road for a rematch with Indiana on Oct. 19 at 7 p.m.
