Emily Londot; Women’s Volleyball versus Nebraska in 2022. Credit: Katie Good | Lantern File Photo
In front of a packed Covelli Arena, the home debut for No. 12 Ohio State (3-1) was a hard-fought, four-set clash that didn’t go as planned for the Buckeyes.
The No. 11 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (3-0) won 3-1 despite the large fanfare at Covelli Arena. After dropping the first set, Georgia Tech took the next three to secure the victory.
“It was great to get back into the Covelli atmosphere after playing three away games,” senior outside hitter Emily Londot said.
The Yellow Jackets were led by a three-headed, outside-hitter monster of senior Tamara Otene, junior Bianca Bertolino and freshman Larissa Mendes.
All three left-side hitters posted double-digit kills. Two of them had double-doubles as well. Bertolino posted 14 kills and 10 digs, while Otene led the pack with 16 kills and 14 digs.
Yellow Jacket’s senior setter Bella D’Amico put up a double-double of her own, posting 34 assists with 12 digs. Londot led the charge for the Buckeyes with 19 kills and seven digs. Her partner in crime, freshman setter Mia Tuman, pitched in with a double-double of 39 assists and 12 digs.
In her Covelli Center debut, freshman outside hitter Grace Egan excelled defensively with a team-leading 15 digs.
“I think really trusting the block is easier to go off of,” Egan said, “Trusting them and stepping
in the seams.”
The first set was a back-and-forth affair, with the two teams trading leads twice and tying five times. The Buckeyes were hot the whole way, hitting at an efficient .312 clip for the set, riding their hot hands to a 25-20 first-set win.
The Yellow Jackets then got the Buckeyes back in the second set with their ability to attack shining through. Georgia Tech racked up 17 kills in the set, pulling away with a 9-4 run after Ohio State cut the score to 16-15, ultimately winning it 25-19.
The third set was all Georgia Tech. After racing to a quick 7-1 lead, Ohio State cut it to a 7-4 set. From that point on, the Yellow Jackets dominated, taking the set by double digits ending with a 25-15 score.
“Hats off to them [Georgia Tech] for having a great game plan and executing at a high level,” Ohio State head coach Jen Flynn Oldenburg said. “Having a team that has success in their conference, getting on our home court is always a good battle.”
At the beginning of the final set, the Yellow Jackets jumped out to an early 7-1 lead again, but from that point on, the Buckeyes came storming back, tying it 8-8. They went back and forth and swapped leads for a couple points, then held the lead from the score of 12-11 up to a score of 24-23.
Georgia Tech kicked back into gear, snatching the lead back to win the set 27-25 and the match 3-1 outright.
“We didn’t execute our game plan today as good as we could’ve today, but we’re ready to bring it tomorrow,” Londot said.
Amid the loss, the Buckeyes knew to keep a positive mindset.
“We play our best when we’re loose, free and happy,” Londot said. “And we try to move on from the negative things as soon as possible and focus on the next point.”
The crowd did not disappoint and was 3,126 strong for the Buckeye home opener. They’re coming off a season where they were sixth in the NCAA in attendance, averaging 3,609 attendees per home match.The two teams will face off again Saturday in the Covelli Center at 6 p.m.
