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COLUMBUS, Ohio – No. 13 Ohio State (6-2) needed five sets to complete a sweep of visiting Princeton (2-5) Friday at the Covelli Center. The match was the second of two between the two schools. Ohio State won the Thursday matchup 3-1.
The Buckeyes won the first set Friday 25-13 but the Tigers got things going to win sets two (25-23) and three (25-17). Ohio State tied the match at 2-all with a 25-17 win in the fourth. The Buckeyes came out strong and in the final set to secure the victory with a 15-9 fifth-set victory.
Jacob Pasteur led the Buckeyes with 20 kills. Jack Stevens also was in double figures with 10 to go with a team-leading 10 digs. Michael Wright was credited with 25 assists.
How it Happened
Set 1
An ace by Noah Platfoot gave the Buckeyes a 3-0 lead. Back-to-back Princeton errors put Ohio State up 5-1. A Jack Stevens kill followed by another Tiger error increased the Ohio State lead to 8-3. A Jacob Pasteur kill led to a Princeton timeout with the Buckeyes on top 10-4. Ohio State kept the rally going with a kill from Samuel Clark and a block by Pasteur and Cole Young for a 12-4 lead. The Tigers scored three-of-four points before a service error made it 15-9 Buckeyes. A Stevens kill and a Pasteur ace led to a Princeton timeout with Ohio State leading 17-9. Ohio State finished off the set, winning eight of the final 12 points in a 25-13 win. Ohio State hit .562 in the opening set while Princeton hit .120. Stevens led Ohio State with four kills.
Set 2
The teams traded points until the Tigers took a 7-5 lead. The advantage increased to 10-7 and then 12-9 Tigers. Ohio State cut it to 14-13 Princeton on a Clark kill after a 3-1 OSU run. The Buckeyes got to within one three more times before calling timeout after the Tigers took a 21-18 lead following a 3-1 run. A Pasteur kill and an ace from Shane Wetzel closed the gap to 22-20 Princeton, leading to a Tiger timeout. Ohio State scored three of the next four points to make it 24-23 Tigers. Princeton then called its final timeout and then won 25-23 on an Ohio State error. After two sets, Pasteur led Ohio State with eight kills.
Set 3
A Clark kill gave Ohio State its first lead at 4-3 in the third. The Buckeyes went up 5-3 but the Tigers evened the set at 6-all. Princeton took an 11-8 lead before making it 13-9, leading to an Ohio State timeout. The Buckeyes called their final timeout after the Tigers built a 16-10 lead. After an Ohio State 3-1 run to make it 20-15 Princeton, the Tigers called timeout. Princeton then scored five of the next seven points to win 25-17 to take a 2-1 lead.
Set 4
After Ohio State led 4-3, the Tigers went on a 4-1 run to take a 7-5 lead. After a Princeton error, Pasteur recorded a pair of kills to give Ohio State an 8-7 lead. After the Tigers tied it at 8-all, Ohio State scored the next three of the next four points for an 11-9 lead. A Pasteur kill put the Buckeyes up 13-10. The advantage improved to 15-11 Buckeyes on a Young and Pasteur block. Princeton then called timeout, its first of the set. The Tigers called their final timeout after a Pasteur kill improved Ohio State’s lead to 17-12. A Princeton error put the Buckeyes in the lead 21-14. Ohio State then scored four of the next seven points to win the set 25-17 and even the match at 2-all.
Set 5
Ohio State started 4-0 in the race to 15 in the final set. Following kills from Pasteur and Wetzel, Princeton called its first timeout. Princeton came back to make it 5-3 Buckeyes. Kills by Stevens and Pasteur put the Buckeyes up 8-4. The Tigers called its final timeout after another Pasteur kill put Ohio State in the lead 9-4. The Tigers cut into the lead to trail 10-7 before an error and Ohio State block put the Buckeyes up 12-7. A Howard kill set up match point (14-8). Wetzel got the match-winning kill to give the Buckeyes the 15-9 win in the final set and 3-2 victory in the match.
Up Next
Ohio State will take part in the annual Big Ten/Pac 12 Challenge next weekend in State College, Pennsylvania. The Buckeyes will meet UCLA Friday (4 p.m.) and USC (4 p.m.) Saturday. Penn State will take on the Trojans Friday and the Bruins Saturday.
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