Freshman Mia Tuman, 9, locks into a serve while battling for the Ohio State Women’s Volleyball Team on Sept. 27, 2023.
Credit: Lily Hynes | Assistant Photo Editor
The Buckeyes and Nittany Lions seem to be starting a tradition.
After two five-set triumphs against Penn State last year, the No. 24 Buckeyes (6-9, 3-3 Big Ten) dropped this five-set marathon (25-23, 23-25, 20-25, 25-21, 15-7) to the No. 14 Nittany Lions (12-3, 6-0 Big Ten) Saturday after holding onto a 2-1 lead.
The Buckeyes faced a new opponent on their side of the court — none other than Ohio State graduate setter Mac Podraza.
Podraza led the way for Penn State in University Park, Pennsylvania, posting a massive double-double with 48 assists and 14 digs in her first match against Ohio State.
Podraza was one of four Nittany Lions that picked up double-digit digs, and sophomore libero Gillian Grimes led their back-line defense with 23 digs of her own.
The high dig totals benefitted the Penn State offense, which was the equalizer at the end of the match, as it picked up 65 kills to Ohio State’s 58.
Despite the loss, senior middle blocker Rylee Rader and freshman setter Mia Tuman helped keep Ohio State in the game the whole way. Rader picked up 13 kills on 27 swings to go with four digs, two blocks, two assists and an ace, and Tuman picked up 45 assists to pair with 16 digs and four blocks of her own.
“I like the fight our team showed for the majority of the match,” Ohio State head coach Jen Flynn Oldenburg said.
The first set was a dogfight the whole way, with neither team giving up a lead larger than 2 points for the entirety of the set. The Nittany Lions took it off the strength of a .272 hitting percentage, earning them the 25-23 victory.
Ohio State’s defense stifled the Penn State offense in the second, holding the Nittany Lions to a .163 hitting percentage backed by 21 digs in the frame. Its sure-handed back-row defense in that set propelled the Buckeyes to a 25-23 victory.
After a strong defensive set in the second, the Buckeyes improved on their efforts by
holding Penn State to hitting a minuscule .089 percentage. The Buckeyes remained strong on the front and back lines with 22 more digs in the set to go with 10 blocks through the entire match by the end of the third.
Their defense led them to a 25-20 third-set win.
The Buckeyes lost the fourth after winning the previous two, almost coming back from being down 23-15, rallying to bring it within three at 24-21, but ultimately losing the set point to end it at 25-21.
The deciding set was all Penn State, as the Nittany Lions pulled away after a 5-5 tie, only allowing two more Buckeye points en route to the 15-7 match winner.
“Penn State played tougher at the end when it mattered,” Oldenburg said.
Ohio State looks to turn the tables at home against Illinois on Friday at 7:00 p.m.
