Sports
Ohio Picks Up First Home Win Over VCU
< < Back toThe first home win for the Ohio volleyball team (2-3) was a sweet one as it swept the Virginia Commonwealth University Rams (1-4), 3-0 (25-17, 26-24, 25-20), who defeated them last season in the final match of the regular season.
For Deane Webb it was also his first victory in the Convocation Center since becoming head coach of the Bobcats this season.
“It’s not about me. It’s about the kids and they did a good job,” he said.
Ohio jumped out to a quick 6-1 lead early in the first set to set the tone of the game. Strong net play from Ohio prevented VCU from ever gaining a lead and coasted them to a 25-17 first-set victory.
Eight attack errors and six service errors affected the Bobcats in the second set, however, allowing VCU to keep pace with Ohio all the way until the end. Trailing 24-22 in the second set, Ohio dug deep to capitalize off of a VCU error with a kill from middle hitter Karin Bull. Senior Kelly Lamberti’s solo block closed the second set in emphatic fashion giving Ohio the 26-24 edge.
Lamberti came up big for the ‘Cats all match long, specifically in the third and final set where she recorded nine of her match-high 15 kills. From the continuous aggressive play from the Green and White in the third set, the Bobcats could sense that they were on their way to their first home victory.
“I think that our team is very competitive in all aspects of the game. I feel like everyone was wound up and was ready to finally get a win,” said Lamberti on the atmosphere in the Convo.
The third set remained competitive all the way up until a 20-20 tie. From there, back-to-back kills from Lamberti, one ace from Brooke Coleman and a final kill from sophomore Mallory Salis clinched the 25-20 win in the game-deciding set.
Even though they came out victorious, the Bobcats were haunted all match from numerous errors. They totaled 17 attack errors and 15 service errors on the match, giving the Rams points and momentum during crucial times.
“Today we lost focus a little bit,” said coach Webb. “They are fixable errors, though, so that’s a good thing. It’s just got to be focus.”
Ohio will look to improve on their mistakes and win number later tonight when they challenge Virginia Tech at 7 p.m. in the Convo.