VB2K21: Ohio State stops UW

"I feel good ... My heart's racing still," senior outside hitter Mia Grunze said after Ohio State (2-0) toppled the number four ranked team in the nation, Washington (1-1) 3-1, Saturday night at Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio.

After playing in front of no fans last season, the 1,476 screaming fans provided Ohio State with a welcome soundtrack during its big early season win. "So much love for them," Ohio State senior outside hitter Mya Grunze said. "So grateful for them. They make it a crazy environment. So much fun to play in. I walked in here and I was hyped already. I was ready to go because of everyone around us ... Best damn fans in the land, so it was exciting to play in front of them."

The Buckeyes overcame a 25-23 set one loss to Washington, to dominate the rest of the night winning sets two through four, 25-19, 25-22, 25-18, respectively. Ohio State head coach Jen Flynn Oldenburg enjoyed the performance of her squad, "It was cool to see our players respond to moment, to the match, to fans ... it was a great match. It was fun to be a part of."

After Washington began the night hitting 28 percent in the first set, the Buckeyes defense clamped down limiting the Huskies to 14.6 percent in set two, 11.6 percent in set three and a miserable 2.4 percent in set four.

"I think we just we prepared for a battle," Flynn Oldenburg said. "I feel like our players take a lot of pride in their defense and that started to wear their hitters down. I think their hitters are used to scoring, of course. They're really good attackers, but our defense kept us in rallies."

Senior setter Mac Podroza said the team expected to get the victory, "We expected to be in this place, we've been working really hard to be in this place. No surprise here. It's a big time win. If people didn't realize that we're going somewhere, they do now."

Podroza led all players with 46 assists, while collecting four kills on nine attempts. She also had nine digs and a team best four service aces.

Grunze was the team's top hitter on average with 18 kills and a percentage of .333. Sophomore outside hitter Emily Londot posted a game high 19 kills with a .283 hitting clip. Londot had a busy night on the defensive side, sharing the game's top digs total of 18 with teammate Kylie Murr, a 5-6, defensive specialist who is in her junior season.

Washington was led in kills by junior outside hitter Claire Hoffman's 12.

There were three other games during the weekend. On Saturday, Northern Kentucky (1-1) was victorious over Ohio (0-2) in a five-set battle to begin the day's action. Just like in the Ohio State win, Northern Kentucky dropped the first game, but the Norse later went on to fall behind 2-1, before holding off the Bobcats for a 3-2 (15-25, 25-21, 23-25, 27-25, 15-8) win. Senior Anna Brinkmann's performance improved throughout the contest, as she led the Norse with 15 kills to go along with 15 digs. NKU also received inspiring play from Abby Kanakry, Joy Banks and Sequoia Hunt, who made the absolute most out of her limited action in the middle.

On Friday, Ohio State defeated NKU 3-0 (25-10, 25-18, 25-14). Junior outside hitter Gabby Gonzales led Ohio State with 15 kills. Freshman middle blocker Arica Davis posted 13 blocks in her first collegiate game for the Buckeyes.

Washington scored its first win of the season over Ohio, after a decision of 3-0 (25-21, 25-20, 25-14).

Hoffman dominated for Washington with 13 kills on just 22 attempts. Her teammates Marin Grote and Madi Endsley combined for 13 kills on 18 attempts in the season opener.