The Buckeyes lost to the Indiana Hoosiers Saturday night.
Credit: Lance Haupricht | Lantern Photographer
A dominant Hoosier block did the Buckeyes in Saturday night.
Ohio State (7-12, 4-6 Big Ten) dropped a tight five-setter (21-25, 25-23, 25-22, 20-25, 15-13) in Bloomington, Indiana, against Indiana (16-7, 6-4 Big Ten). Despite a .241 hitting percentage, the Buckeyes fell victim to 14 swats courtesy of the Hoosiers.
Graduate and sophomore middle blockers Kaley Rammelsburg and Avry Tatum led the block party, denying seven and six attacks respectively. Just like the match itself, the dig battle was close, with Indiana edging out the Buckeyes 72-71 in that category. Freshman libero Ramsey Gary held it down for the Hoosiers, hustling for 26 digs in the victory.
The Buckeyes still had their standouts in the loss, with senior outside hitter Emily Londot posting a massive 25-kill, 17-dig double-double with several of those attacks coming off the pass of freshman setter Mia Tuman and her 52 assists.
Head coach Jen Flynn Oldenburg said the middles performed well.
“Rylee Rader came up big offensively,” Oldenburg said. “And Eloise Brandewie had a great night defensively.”
Freshman Brandewie posted nine kills and seven blocks alongside senior Rader’s 12 kills on a .478 clip.
Ohio State started the first set red hot, jumping to a 16-8 lead with a .714 hitting percentage at that point. Indiana climbed back to make it 22-21, but Ohio State notched 3 straight points to take the first frame 25-21 on a double-block set by Brandewie and Tuman.
The second was close the entire way, featuring eight ties and four lead changes. The Hoosiers got the edge at the end, winning 25-23 backed by a .308 hitting percentage.
In the third, the score flip-flopped even more often, with 10 ties and four lead changes occurring. Despite the back-and-forth affair, Indiana held the lead for the majority of the set, culminating in a 25-22 victory despite a .176 hitting percentage.
Ohio State turned it around in the fourth frame after getting out to a 22-14 lead, earning a 25-20 win and evening the score, 2-2, off the strength of 19 digs from their back line.
In the deciding fifth set, Ohio State struck first, picking up the first 3 points. Indiana rallied back, snaring a 4-point lead at 10-6. The Buckeyes scored three straight to get within one, but Indiana kept them at bay with a nail-biter 15-13 win finished off by a kill off the swing of Tatum.
“Tonight was a battle, it was good to see our response and late in the fifth,” Oldenburg said.
Oldenburg said she hopes the team can carry this energy into their next performance at home against Northwestern.
“We need to continue to have this type of fire and intent as we head into next week,” Oldenburg said.
Ohio State will face off against the Wildcats Wednesday for a 6 p.m. match at the Covelli Center.
