Senior middle blocker Cole Young (18) celebrates after No. 16 Ohio State (7-8, 3-3) scored during their match against Purdue Fort Wayne (6-9, 1-7) Saturday at the Covelli Center. The Buckeyes secured a 3-2 victory. Credit: Daniel Bush | Lantern Photographer
Ohio State trailed after both the first and third sets.
However, the two deficits wouldn’t daunt the Buckeyes.
No. 16 Ohio State stormed back from a 2-1 deficit to secure a thrilling five-set win over Purdue Fort Wayne at the Covelli Center Saturday evening.
Outside hitter Kyle Teune said he has confidence in his teammates to stay collected and focused no matter the adversity they face, which was especially true of Saturday’s match.
“We knew we had it in us, we just had to stay calm and composed throughout the set,” Teune said. “A lot of it was responding to errors, and forgetting it with the last play, and moving on to what was coming next.”
Both teams battled to a stalemate in the first set as the Buckeyes and Mastodons tied 9-9.
Four consecutive Purdue Fort Wayne errors allowed Ohio State to take control with a 7-0 run led by Teune.
The Mastodons responded with a 6-0 run of their own, fueled by two kills from middle blocker Caleb Lipscomb.
Four unanswered points from Purdue Fort Wayne tied the game at 21-21 before Mastodons opposite hitter Logan Muir took over and recorded two late kills, sealing a 25-23 first-set victory.
The Buckeyes responded in the second set. Ohio State opened with a 12-5 lead behind five combined kills from Teune and opposite hitter Shane Wetzel.
Though Purdue Fort Wayne countered with a 6-1 run, Ohio State quickly regained momentum.
Outside hitter Stanislaw Chacinski helped fuel another 12-5 Buckeye run and secured a commanding 25-16 win to tie the match at one set apiece.
Ohio State carried its momentum into the third set, jumping out to a 4-2 lead.
However, the Mastodons silenced the home crowd with a dominant 15-2 run that included four more kills from Muir.
Despite two late errors from Purdue Fort Wayne, Lipscomb’s final kill secured a 25-13 win for the Mastodons to earn a 2-1 lead.
The Buckeyes struggled early in the fourth set, trailing 7-3.
Wetzel responded with three kills that helped Ohio State claw back with a 5-2 run.
The teams traded points until they tied at 15-15. Muir led a 5-1 Mastodon run, but the Buckeyes answered with four straight points behind Wetzel and Teune.
Ohio State closed the set with three more unanswered points to clinch a 27-25 win off a Chacinski kill and force a fifth set.
With momentum on their side, the Buckeyes dominated the final set. Ohio State jumped out to a 5-2 lead and never looked back.
Wetzel and Teune combined for five more kills as Ohio State outscored Purdue Fort Wayne 6-2 down the stretch.
The Buckeyes sealed the victory as they throttled the Mastodons 15-6 in the final set.
Teune, who led all players with 23 kills, credited his career-best performance to advice he received from a former Ohio State legend.
“Doug Beal, former coach and player here, gave me some advice about starting a little closer to the net in my approach, and that seemed to kind of do the trick,” Teune said.
Ohio State head coach Grant Strong praised his team’s ability to fight back after the Buckeyes dropped the third set.
“This is a resilient group, and I’m proud of how we handled things and our fight to overcome that fourth set,” Strong said.
The Buckeyes (7-8, 4-3 MIVA) now travel to Newark, New Jersey to face No. 19 New Jersey Institute of Technology (7-5, 2-3 MIVA) at 6 p.m. Friday. The game will stream on Big Ten+.
