Oct. 15, 2005
Box Score
AKRON, Ohio - The 23rd-ranked Ohio volleyball team stretched its game winning streak to 30 when it swept Akron 3-0 (30-18, 30-25, 30-16) here tonight.
The Bobcats extended their winning streak against MAC opponents to 32 with the win. Ohio moves to 18-2 overall and 8-0 in the conference. Akron falls to 8-12 overall and 3-5 in the conference play.
Julia Winkfield (Newark, Ohio) led three Bobcats in double-digit kills with 16 while hitting at a .412 clip. Melissa Griffin (Whitehall, Mich.) and Holly Schetzsle (Pataskala, Ohio) each added 10 kills.
Savanah Parra (Temecula, Calif.) set the Bobcat attack with 45 assists and matched her career-high with four service aces. Michaele Blackburn (Cincinnati, Ohio) reached 20-plus digs for the second consecutive match, leading Ohio with 23. Stephanie Blackburn added 11 digs and career-high four total blocks. Winkfield led the Bobcats with five blocks.
Ohio narrowly missed hitting over .300 for the sixth consecutive match, finished at .296. The Bobcat defense stepped up, holding Akron to a .045 hitting percentage, the second-lowest total for the Ohio defense this year.
Schetzsle was the Bobcat offense in the opening frame, starting with a kill on the first point. Ohio pushed the lead to 10-7 with Schetzsle's third kill of the game. The Bobcats used a 6-0 run in the middle of the frame to increase their lead to 22-14, with three of the six points during the run coming courtesy of Schetzsle. Ohio closed with an 8-4 run to take the opening frame 30-18 behind seven Schetzsle kills.
The Bobcats jumped out to a big lead in the second game but saw Akron make a comeback to make it close. Ohio used two assisted blocks from Griffin and McKenzie Mauck (Muncie, Ind.) and six attack errors from the Zips to take a 10-3 lead. Akron slowly chipped away at Ohio's lead, cutting the gap to four at 16-12. The Zips closed to within one at 26-25 but the Bobcats refused to allow them to get over the hump. Ohio closed the game on a 4-0 run, highlighted by two Stephanie Blackburn kills, to take the second game 30-25.
Ohio carried the late game two momentum over to the third and final frame. The Bobcats controlled the entire third game, opening with a 9-3 start. Ohio pushed the lead to double-digits at 18-8 and to a game-high 18 at 27-9. Akron used a late run to close to 29-16 but it was too little, too late, with the Bobcats taking the game 30-16.
The Bobcats will be on the road again next weekend. Ohio plays Western Michigan Friday at 7 p.m. and Northern Illinois Saturday at 7 p.m.
