Sports

Ohio Volleyball falls to Toledo, fails to capitalize on hot start

By: Andrew Woods
Posted on: Saturday, October 5, 2024

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ATHENS, Ohio (WOUB) — After a thrilling win the previous night, the Ohio Bobcats (6-9, 2-2 MAC) got off to a hot start, but could not capitalize on it, losing to Toledo (10-7, 3-2 MAC) 3-1. 

Ohio began the match with five straight points. Toledo fired back with a pair of kills to make the match 5-2. Right after, Ohio went on their biggest run of the season, scoring 15 points in a row, thanks in part to seven Toledo errors. Soon, Toledo would try to claw things back, scoring five points in a row, but three Rockets errors and a Kam Hunt service ace gave Ohio a dominant 25-7 win. Toledo could not get out of their own way during the first set, racking up 11 errors, including nine attack errors.  

The Bobcats’ momentum from the first set did not carry over to the second, as Ohio and Toledo began the set swapping points. However, Toledo maintained a slight advantage before taking all the momentum and breaking off a 10-2 run. This run made the score 19-9 Rockets. Although both teams began to swap points, an Izzy Granger kill secured a 25-16 set win for the Rockets.  

Toledo’s momentum continued in the third set, as the Rockets again took a slight lead early, then took over with a major run. This time, three Granger kills led the Rockets to a 7-1 run, which gave them an 18-11 lead. Both teams began to swap points, however, Toledo went on a 4-1 run to win their third set 25-17. This meant the momentum was firmly in Toledo’s favor after the Bobcats’ hot first set. When talking about the shift, head coach Geoff Carlston said, “It’s volleyball. We didn’t serve as tough, we didn’t play as gritty and they [Toledo] did.” 

As the fourth set began, Toledo went on a 5-1 run thanks to multiple Bobcat attack errors. However, for the first time since the first set, Ohio went on a run of their own. Anna Kharchynska and Cam Hunt scored two kills apiece to give the Bobcats new life with a 9-1 run. Hunt led the Bobcats with 17 kills. Soon, Toledo would fire back, scoring six points in a row to take a 14-13 lead. After this run, both teams swapped points as the set ran down. Ohio would get up all the way to a 23-20 lead. Toledo would have the last word though. Thanks to three Ohio errors and two Granger kills, Toledo won the set and the match.  

After the match, Carlston said that Toledo “played at a higher level,” than Ohio throughout the match. However, he said, “When we serve aggressive and our passing is going well for us, we’re pretty good.” 

Next week, Ohio plays two road games in three days. The Bobcats play preseason MAC favorite Western Michigan (5-10, 1-3 MAC) on Oct. 9 and Northern Illinois (2-12, 0-4 MAC) on Oct. 11.