Ohio State sophomore middle blocker Eloise Brandewie (31) reaches for a block against the University of Minnesota. The Golden Gophers defeated the Buckeyes 3-2 Sunday at the Covelli Center. Credit: Ohio State Athletics
After taking a two-set lead, the Buckeyes dropped three sets and failed to close out the Minnesota Golden Gophers.
Ohio State (8-12, 1-9 Big Ten) fell to No. 15 Minnesota (14-6, 7-3 Big Ten) in five sets (25-16, 25-18, 22-25, 16-25, 10-15) at Columbus’ Covelli Center Sunday. The Buckeyes held a commanding two-set lead but failed to capitalize, suffering their fifth straight loss as a result.
Both teams traded points early in the first set, with Minnesota holding a narrow lead at 8-7.
An ace from freshman libero Olivia Hasbrook helped Ohio State reclaim the lead, while a kill from graduate outside hitter Emily Londot a couple of plays later helped the Buckeyes achieve a 4-0 run.
Ohio State continued building its lead from there, as freshman outside hitter Reese Wuebker got an ace to put the Buckeyes up 22-14.
A joint block by sophomore setter Mia Tuman and graduate middle blocker Rylee Rader won the first set for the Buckeyes at 25-16, prompting cheers from the home crowd.
Rader said Ohio State’s team didn’t need to significantly alter its game approach between the first and second sets.
“We don’t have to change anything, like, we don’t have to do anything special,” Rader said. “And we were just — we had nothing to lose. So, I think that’s [exactly how] we were playing.”
The second set saw more of the same for Ohio State. A kill from sophomore middle blocker Eloise Brandewie pushed the Buckeyes’ lead to 12-7, forcing Minnesota to call their first timeout of the set.
The Buckeyes continued to dominate as an ace from Rader helped Ohio State reach set point at 24-17. Moments later, graduate outside hitter Emily Londot got her 10th kill of the match to win the second set 25-18.
Both teams traded points in the third set, before Minnesota took a 10-8 lead.
Later in the set, Londot seemingly threw the ball in anger after missing a hit, leading to another Minnesota point that put the Gophers up 15-12.
The Buckeyes got within two points at 21-19; even so, Minnesota extended its lead to three with a kill that forced game point.
At game point, Ohio State head coach Jen Flynn Oldenburg challenged an attack error by Londot. The refs, however, did not overturn the call, and Minnesota won the third set 25-22.
Rader said she felt the momentum shift at the end of the third set, when the sweep was right in the team’s hands.
“I felt the momentum shift when we didn’t get that third set,” Rader said. “I think we started; we just wanted that sweep so badly, and then so whenever we didn’t get that third set, it kind of dipped a little bit.”
Ohio State and Minnesota opened the fourth set deadlocked at seven points each.
Still, it was all Golden Gophers from there, as Minnesota scored 10 of the next 13 points to extend its lead to 17-10.
Rader recorded a kill at 22-15, but the Buckeyes couldn’t sustain their momentum, and Minnesota won the fourth set 25-16.
The Buckeyes opened the fifth set with a 4-1 lead, with help from kills by Tuman and freshman outside hitter Emmi Sellman.
Subsequently, Minnesota fought back to take a 9-6 lead with a 5-0 run.
The Golden Gophers continued to run away with the lead, and the Buckeyes took two timeouts within the last seven plays. But it wasn’t enough, as Minnesota won 15-10, effectively completing its comeback.
Brandewie said the Buckeyes fought hard throughout the match, but their consistency — or lack thereof — got the best of them toward the end.
“I think the whole match, we fought really hard,” Brandewie said. “But in the second and third set, there was definitely a dip in, like, our energy and just our consistency, and we let the emotions get the best of us.”
Ohio State will host the Iowa Hawkeyes at the Covelli Center 7:30 p.m. Thursday. The match will be available for broadcast on Big Ten Network.
