Sports
Volleyball: Ohio Bounces Back Against Toledo
By: Alex Hider
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What a difference a day makes.
One day removed from a tough loss to Ball State, Ohio rebounded to sweep Toledo 25-14, 26-24, 27-25 Saturday on night in the Convocation Center.
“We needed that,” said Coach Ryan Theis of the bounce back. “The fact that [games] two and three got tight at the end and we were able to hold them off was a positive for us.”
“Tight” is an understatement.
Falling behind early in game two, Ohio came back by playing to its strengths: textbook blocking and great defense. Freshman Kelly Lamberti contributed with 6 kills in the set, including 4 straight points to give the Bobcats a 19-17 lead. Despite a ferocious comeback by the Rockets to tie it at 24, the Bobcats took the game with two quick points.
Lamberti wasn’t finished.
She added six more kills in the final game, and teamed up with Lexie Hartnett for a clutch block to tie the game at 19.
“I just wanted to work hard and keep making plays,” said Lamberti. “The momentum just starts up with everyone else on the team.”
Things got testy near the end of the match as an error was ruled on Ohio that tied the game at 22. A visually upset Coach Theis called a timeout following the play, but he didn’t focus on the call. Theis said the timeout was simply an adjustment to get “Faith [Robbins] a quality touch.” The adjustments worked, and after Ohio survived two game points, a Toledo error gave the Bobcats the victory.
“We just pulled it back together and started brand new and played hard,” said Lamberti on improvements from yesterday.
“Toledo is a lot better than their record indicates. That MAC West is a dogfight,” said Theis. “As far as a measuring stick, I’m just more concerned about us getting better.”
The schedule does not get much easier for the Bobcats, who will travel to Western Michigan and Northern Illinois Friday and Saturday, respectively.