Sept. 23, 2011
Final Stats | Photo Gallery 
ATHENS, Ohio - Ohio Volleyball opened MAC play with a resounding 25-17, 25-19, 28-26 sweep of previously unbeaten Bowling Green. The Bobcats finished with 11.0 blocks and didn't trail in the match until the third set as they won their sixth straight against the Falcons.
The first set was tied 4-4 until a six-point run by the Bobcats, fueled by four BG errors, pushed Ohio ahead 10-4. That edge was all the home side would need as the lead never slipped below five points and the 'Cats took the first set 25-17. Katie Post and Lexie Hartnett finished with three kills apiece and the 'Cats tallied a match-best five blocks in the set.
The second set started 2-2 until Ohio put together a run to go up 6-2 on a kill by Karst. BG cut the gap to 11-10 and still trailed only 19-17 before the Bobcats scored six of the final eight points and took control of the match with a 25-19 win in the set. Chelsea Bilger had four kills in the set for Ohio and Hartnett pushed her block total to six through the first two sets.
Ohio fell behind in the third set 11-6 but regrouped and took five of the next six points to claw back within one at 12-11. A service ace by BG's Ashley Dunn capped a run that saw it take four of the next five points to push the lead back to four at 16-12. Ohio responded with six of the next seven points, tying the set on a second-consecutive ace by Bailey Karst and taking the lead, 18-17, on a kill by Kelly Lamberti.
The 'Cats quickly fell behind by two at 21-19 but would tie things on a BG service error and a solo block by Post. Ohio had three match-point attempts thwarted before getting the final kill by Lamberti at 27-26 to win the set and sweep the match. Ohio hit a match-best .289 in the final set, getting foul kills each from Post and Bilger and three kills apiece from Hartnett and Lamberti.
For the match, Bilger led the way with 10 kills and hit .381 while falling one dig shy of a double-double for Ohio. Post and Hartnett each finished with nine kills with the senior hitting .571 and the sophomore amassing a match-high seven blocks and 14.0 points. Karst led the 'Cats with 32 assists and also added eight digs to go with her two critical service aces. Mollie Geske, who entered fifth in the league in digs, led the home team with 13.
This was the fourth-straight home win for the Bobcats, dating back to last season and extended the home winning streak over BG to 10 years.
Ohio hosts archrival Miami tomorrow night at 7 p.m. The first 300 fans will receive a Dig Pink Ohio Volleyball shirt. Campus Involvement will also be collecting funds and auctioning off autographed pink volleyballs with all proceeds benefitting the Susan G. Komen Foundation for breast cancer research.
