The Ohio State men’s volleyball team huddles up during the Ohio State-Loyola game on Feb. 20. Ohio State won 3-2. Credit: Christian Harsa | Asst. Photo Editor
For the first time this season, the Ohio State men’s volleyball team found a way to win outside the comfort of the Covelli Center.
Ohio State’s 3-2 (25-22, 23-25, 25-20, 19-25, 15-13) win marks its third straight victory after a rocky start to its season. The Buckeyes (5-6) handed Ball State (7-2) its second loss of the year by finding a way to get around the Cardinals’ dominant defensive front.
In a tight battle that was fought at the net, Ohio State was able to hold off the Cardinals in the first set. The Buckeyes’ offense was able to get an early lead that they maintained throughout the set, despite Ball State’s strong presence at the net.
Ball State had nine attack errors in the first set, four higher than its season average. This sloppy play prevented them from getting into a rhythm offensively.
“We were just trying to earn it,” Ohio State head coach Kevin Burch said. “We weren’t very concerned with their mistakes. We were just trying to find solutions to our mistakes so we could control the match in every way that we could.”
The Cardinals found their groove in the second set by capitalizing off of the Buckeyes’ flaws. Ohio State had 10 service errors in the set which allowed Ball State some breathing room to establish its attack.
Service errors have haunted the Buckeyes all season, coming into the matchup with 207 this year. Ohio State had 26 service errors in the match, stifling their offense from momentum at times.
“Once it becomes a mental thing in a match where everyone clearly knows it’s an issue, then it becomes a negative mindset when they go back there to serve,” Burch said. “The big issue is trying to get them to be fearless and try to change their mental mindset when they go back there.”
The Buckeyes were able to clean up their mistakes in the third set, jumping out to a quick lead early, while finding holes in the Cardinals’ defensive front.
Senior outside hitter Martin Lallemand said that playing aggressively and unpredictably allowed his offense to stay in control.
“We just kept going at it and never really got tentative,” Lallemand said. “We kept taking hard swings, so they were on their heels the whole night.”
Lallemand carried the Buckeyes offense, earning 21 kills and a .375 hitting percentage.
Ball State battled back in the fourth, earning a 6-point advantage midway through the set. Ohio State was unable to overcome this deficit because of the aggressive defense of Ball State.
The Cardinals’ strong protection was led by graduate outside attacker Blake Reardon. He notched five blocks and seven digs including several high-energy plays that stimulated Ball State’s momentum throughout the match.
Despite this energy heading into the fifth set, the Cardinals were unable to complete the comeback. Burch said that he trusted his team and wasn’t afraid heading into the final set.
“I told them, “If you told me before this match started that we had one game to 15, I’m taking you guys every single time,’” Burch said. “We tried to stay focused looking forward and control this match in every single way.”
Ohio State cleaned up its play and only had two errors in the final set, a significant improvement over previous sets. Lallemand said that avoiding mistakes was the only way they could edge out the Cardinals.
“We knew they were going to fight on every single ball,” Lallemand said. “It was supper important to minimize errors the entire game, especially in that fifth set.”
Burch said that moving forward, he wants to continue learning from the losses he faced earlier in the season.
“The fight that we have shown since McKendree and the toughness we have gained and the amount we have learned since those two matches has been awesome,” Burch said. “We’re going to continue to push these guys really hard so we can continue to get better.”
The Buckeyes look to sweep the home-and-home series against Ball State as they face off again on March 11 at 6:00 p.m. at the Covelli Center.
