OSU Faces Middle Tennessee State in First Round of NCAA Tournament

COLUMBUS, Ohio - The Ohio State women’s volleyball team (19-14 overall) travels to the University of Tennessee in Knoxville for the opening round of the 2011 NCAA Division I Volleyball Championship and faces Middle Tennessee State (21-11) Thursday at the Thompson-Boling Arena . The match is set for 4:30 p.m. ET.

 

Host and 14th-seeded Tennessee (27-3) will play Duke (21-8) at 7 p.m. Thursday and the first round winners will return to the court Friday for a 7 p.m. second round match.

 

A LOOK AT OHIO STATE

Coached by Geoff Carlston, the Buckeyes are 19-14 overall and finished seventh in the Big Ten with a 9-11 record.

                Leading the Buckeyes in points per set is junior Mari Hole at 4.55, while junior Emily Danks ranks second at 4.16 with senior Kelli Barhorst third at 2.74. Hole has a team-best 4.02 kills per set average with Danks second at 3.27 and Kaitlyn Leary third at 2.48. Barhorst is hitting .308 to lead the squad, while Danks ranks second in attack percentage at .268 and junior Mariah Booth third at .257. At setter, freshman Taylor Sherwin is averaging 9.69 assists per set with junior Amanda Peterson at 9.09. Leading the squad in aces per set is Danks at .48 with 59. Senior Sarah Mignin ranks second at .21 with 25 aces and Hole is third at .17 with 21. Defensively, Mignin has a team-high 4.30 digs per set average. Hole ranks second at 2.74 with Davionna DiSalvatore third at 1.98. At the net, Booth leads the team with a 1.04 blocks per set average with 11 solos and 92 assists. Barhorst ranks second at .97 with 18 solos and 99 assists with Danks third at .74 with 10 solos and 80 assists.

                 Ohio State is averaging 17.80 points, 14.29 kills and 13.39 assists per set while hitting .238. OSU is averaging 1.10 aces, 15.37 digs and 2.41 blocks per set. Buckeye opponents average 15.64 points, 12.60 kills and 11.77 assists per set while hitting .201. They average .99 aces, 14.28 digs and 2.05 blocks per set.

 

OHIO STATE IN THE NCAA

This year’s selection marks the third-consecutive year the Buckeyes have reached the NCAA Tournament. Ohio State holds a 26-17 record in 17 appearances. Last season, the Buckeyes defeated Lipscomb in the first round and followed with an upset over 12th-seeded Dayton, 3-2, in Dayton. The team eventually lost to Stanford in the regional semifinal, 3-1.

 

A LOOK AT MTSU

Coached by Matt Peck, the Blue Raiders reached the NCAA tournament for the sixth-consecutive year after earning an at-large bid. MTSU closed out the regular season with a 3-0 win over VCU at home on Nov. 26 after losing to Sun Belt rival Western Kentucky, 3-1, in the conference championship match, Nov. 19.

                Junior Ashley Adams leads the Blue Raiders with 4.26 points per set average and has a team-best 420 kills and 3.82 kills per set average. Senior Maria Szivos has 311 kills on the year, while senior Alyssa Wistrick is third with 223 kills. Sophomore setter Morgan Peterson leads the squad with an 8.59 assists per set average and libero Brynne Henderson has a team-best 2.96 digs per set average.

 

MTSU-OHIO STATE SERIES

The two squads have met just once in the past, facing each other in postseason play in 2006. The Buckeyes and the Blue Raiders battled in the second round of the NCAA Tournament and Ohio State advanced with a 3-1 (23-30, 30-19, 30-17, 30-22) win over MTSU.

 

A LOOK AT DUKE

Coached by 13-year head coach Jolene Nagel, the Blue Devils advanced to the national tournament for the seventh-straight year, which is an ACC record. Duke has totaled a conference-best 16 NCAA Tournament wins, including a run to the Elite Eight last year.

                Sophomore libero Ali McCurdy was named ACC Defensive Player of the Year after leading the conference with 5.71 digs per set. Senior setter Kellie Catanach and junior middle blocker Christiana Gray were also named to the All-ACC team, while freshman outside hitter Jeme Obeime earned a spot on the ACC All-Freshman Team.

 

DUKE-OHIO STATE SERIES

The Buckeyes and the Blue Devils have not met in competition.

 

A LOOK AT TENNESSEE

Headed by SEC Coach of the Year Rob Patrick, the SEC champion Lady Vols enter the NCAA Championship as the 14th-seed and earn their fourth-straight appearance in the national tournament. The bid is the 13th all-time for Tennessee and the Lady Vols are 12-12 in those 13 appearances.

UT is led by SEC Player of the Year Kelsey Robinson and SEC Freshman of the Year Mary Pollmiller. Robinson, a sophomore outside hitter, finished the regular season first in the league in kills per set (4.57) and points per set (5.19). At setter, Pollmiller was the top setter in the SEC, notching a 12.35 assists-per-set average in conference play and a 12.05 average overall to rank sixth nationally. Juniors DeeDee Harrison and Leslie Cikra earned All-SEC First Team honors, while freshman Tiffany Baker was named to the second team.

 

TENNESSEE-OHIO STATE SERIES

Ohio State leads the Lady Vols with a 7-0 record all time. The two squads’ most recent meeting came in 2004, facing off in the NCAA Regional Semifinal in Minneapolis, Minn. The Buckeyes came away with a come-from-behind win to top Tennessee, 3-2 (29-31, 27-30, 30-16, 30-26, 15-12).