No. 4 Buckeyes Rally to Win in 5 Sets over No. 13 USC

Saturday, January 20

Austin Texas

2:30 p.m.

Ohio State

6-0,0-0MIVA

University of Southern California

5-1,0-0MPSF

Southern California

Ohio St.

No. 4 Buckeyes Rally to Win in 5 Sets over No. 13 USC

1/20/2024 4:50:00 PM | Men's Volleyball

Box Score Photo Gallery

COLUMBUS, Ohio – For the third-consecutive match against a Top 20 school from California, No. 4 Ohio State (6-0) went to five sets vs. No. 13 USC (5-1) Saturday at the Austin (Texas) Convention Center and came away with a 3-2 win over the Trojans.

The Buckeyes won by scores of 25-20, 25-21, 20-25, 18-25, 15-12.

The teams met on the second day of the First Point Collegiate Challenge. Ohio State knocked off No. 1 UCLA Friday 3-2.

The Buckeyes return to Columbus for a meeting with No. 7 Penn State Thursday (6 p.m.) at the Covelli Center. That match will be streamed live by B1G+.

Shane Wetzel led the Buckeyes with 17 kills with Jacob Pasteur adding 13. Starting setter Noah Platfoot led the Buckeyes with 27 assists while Wetzel and Pasteur led with a team-high five digs each.

The win over UCLA, the defending national champion, was the second win over the nation's No. 1 squad in the last two years. The Buckeyes won at top-ranked Penn State at Rec Hall in State College (3-2) March 21, 2023.

Ohio State has now won three-consecutive matches over ranked programs from the state of California. Before traveling to Texas, the Buckeyes defeated No. 17 UC San Diego (3-2) in Columbus. The win over UCLA was the fourth over the Bruins in Ohio State history. The Buckeyes have defeated the Trojans in each of the last four meetings and in eight of the last nine matchups.

Pasture moved into the No. 11 spot in career kills after recording 36 over the weekend for a total of 1,211 and passing No. 11 Colin McMillan (1997-2000). Robbie Klein (2006-09) is next on the list at No. 10 with 1,227.

The Buckeyes leave Austin ??-????

No. 4 Ohio State won its 3rd-consecutive 5-set against USC! @OhioStateMVB | @OhioStAthletics | @FirstPointVB | #fpcc pic.twitter.com/SOoJr9lQdr
— FloVolleyball (@FloVolleyball) January 20, 2024

How it Happened

Set 1
Cole Young got the Buckeyes started with the first kill of the match. A USC error and ace by setter Noah Platfoot put the Buckeyes up 3-1. A Shane Wetzel kill and a 3-0 run for the Buckeyes made it 4-1 before the Trojans answered with a 4-0 run to take a 5-4 lead. The lead did not reach more than a point unit Ohio State used a 3-1 run to lead 9-7, the last two points coming from a Wetzel kill and an ace. The Buckeyes kept its lead until a 5-1 USC run put the Trojans on top 13-12. A media time out stopped the match with the Buckeyes on top 15-14 after kills by Justin Howard and Jacob Pasteur. A Pasteur ace made it 16-14 leading to a Trojans timeout after an Ohio State 4-1 run. Ohio State maintained its edge, building the lead to 19-16, on another kill\ace combination from Wetzel. USC called its second timeout after the Buckeyes upped their edge to 20-16 on a Trojans hitting error. The lead did not fall to less than three the rest of the way in a 25-20 win for the Buckeyes in the opening set. Wetzel led the way with five kills and a pair of aces for the Buckeyes. Ohio State had six aces in the first-set victory.

Set 2
Neither team was able to put consecutive points together until the Trojans took a 7-5 lead after a 3-1 run. USC stayed in front until the Buckeyes used a 4-1 run to take a 10-9 lead after an ace by Young. The set went back-and-forth once again through a brief stoppage for a media timeout with the Buckeyes leading 15-14. Ohio State got its first bit of breathing room after kills by Ben Putnam and Pasteur followed by an Ohio State block (Pasteur/Young) put the Buckeyes up 18-15. Ohio State maintained at least a two-point lead the rest of the way in taking the second set, 25-21. The Buckeyes hit .500 in the second set after hitting .129 in the opener. Wetzel continued to lead in kills with nine with Putnam and Young each with five.

with the one-handed set ??@OhioStateMVB | @FirstPointVB | #FPCC pic.twitter.com/fJ18tRhtfk
— FloVolleyball (@FloVolleyball) January 20, 2024

Buckeyes making it look easy ??@OhioStateMVB | @FirstPointVB | #FPCC pic.twitter.com/SkbfoPRiac
— FloVolleyball (@FloVolleyball) January 20, 2024

Set 3
The third set began as did the previous two with the teams trading punches early. The Buckeyes did not trail by more than two points through the first 20 points (11-9) until the Trojans used a 4-1 run to take a 13-9 lead. After an Ohio State timeout, USC built its lead to 18-12 before the Buckeyes called their final timeout of the set. After cutting into the USC lead (22-18) the Buckeyes were not able to catch the Trojans the rest of the way in a 25-20 loss. Wetzel upped his kill total to 14 with Pasteur next at seven, giving him 30 in the last two matches and moving him past the 100 mark for the young season.

Set 4
The Trojans kept their momentum going in the fourth by jumping to a 4-1 lead. The Buckeyes then scored the next four points to take a 5-4 advantage. USC countered with a 3-0 run to go back on top 7-5. The Trojans stayed in control and built a 15-11 lead at the media timeout. USC did not relent the rest of the way in evening the match at 2-all with a 25-18 win. Wetzel continued to lead in kills for Ohio State with 17 and Pasteur next with nine. With 32 total after nine sets, Pasteur moved into the No. 11 position all time in career kills at Ohio State.

Set 5
The Buckeyes took a 3-2 lead on a pair of Pasteur kills around another by Michael Wright. The teams traded service errors to keep the Buckeyes on top 4-3. USC then took the lead at 5-4 before the Buckeyes scored the next two on a pair of USC errors for a 6-5 edge. The Buckeyes took an 8-7 lead at the media timeout on a kill by Young. The squads continued to trade points until the Buckeyes took the upper hand at 11-9 on a Putnam kill. USC then called timeout. The Buckeyes took a three-point lead at 12-9 on a big triple block by Wetzel, Howard and Putnam. The Trojans then called their final timeout of the match. USC got the next point on an Ohio State service error, leading to Ohio State's first timeout while leading 12-10. The Buckeyes then got the next point on a USC error for a 13-10 edge. USC responded with a kill to make it 13-11 in the race to 15. A Pasteur kill set up match point (14-11) before a Wetzel service error made it 14-12 Buckeyes. Ohio State then called its final timeout before taking the set 15-12 on a Putnam kill and the match, 3-2.