Oct. 19, 2007
Box Score
KALAMAZOO, Mich. - The No. 20 Ohio volleyball team made a statement on the road Friday evening, defeating Mid-American Conference West Division leader Western Michigan in straight games, 30-26, 30-18, 30-22, ending Western Michigan's seven-match winning streak. Ohio improves to 16-4 overall and remains tied with Miami atop the MAC East Division standings with a conference record of 8-1. Western Michigan's overall record falls to 16-7 with the loss and its conference mark drops to 7-2.
Ohio recorded its sixth straight sweep and eighth in the last nine matches by out-hitting Western Michigan .295 to .171, in front of a crowd of 1,007, the Broncos' largest home crowd in over three years.
Senior middle blocker Melissa Griffin (Whitehall, Mich.), senior outside hitter Stephanie Blackburn (Cincinnati, Ohio) and sophomore outside hitter Ellen Herman (Toledo, Ohio) led the Bobcat attack. The 2006 first-team All-MAC trio accounted for 47 kills and a combined .400 hitting percentage in the match. Griffin finished with a match-high 19 kills and hit .417. Blackburn connected on 16 kills (.464) and had nine digs and Herman totaled 12 kills while hitting .308.
Ohio got out to a 9-3 lead to begin the first game, forcing Western Michigan Head Coach Colleen Munson to call a timeout. The timeout proved effective, as Western Michigan proceeded to go on a 7-3 run to cut Ohio's lead to 12-10. Ohio stopped the rally in time to maintain the lead and remained in front the rest of the game, winning 30-26. Griffin led the Bobcats with seven kills in the game.
Ahead 7-6 in game two, Ohio won four straight points to take an early 11-6 advantage. Western Michigan cut the deficit to 17-13, but that was as close as the Broncos would get. Ohio ended the game on a 13-5 run to win pulling away, 30-18, to take a 2-0 lead. Blackburn totaled six kills on seven swings to pace Ohio in the second game.
Ohio fell behind early in the third game, but the Bobcats fought their way back into the lead and held on for the three-game sweep. Western Michigan led 15-12 when Ohio tallied 10 of the next 13 points to get in front 22-18 and take its first lead of the game. Ohio's lead would shrink to 22-20, forcing Head Coach Geoff Carlston to call a timeout. The Bobcats responded following the timeout, winning four consecutive points and eight of the final 10 to win 30-22.
The Bobcats were led defensively by sophomore middle blocker Jane Sytsma (Madison, Wis.) with a match-high five blocks. Sophomore libero Sarah Petrulis (Westlake, Ohio) collected a team-high 12 digs for Ohio while junior setter Jill DeArmond (Fort Wayne, Ind.) and senior defensive specialist Janice Matacic (Liberty Township, Ohio) each had nine digs.
Ohio freshman setter Michelle Jantsch (Mission Hills, Kansas) posted a match-high 31 assists and DeArmond added 20 in the victory.
Western Michigan was led by outside hitter Ashley Vogl's 12 kills on a .409 hitting percentage.
The Bobcats remain on the road for their next match tomorrow against Northern Illinois at 7 p.m.
