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Nov. 21, 2015

Score: No. 2 Ohio 3, No. 3 Kent State 1 (25-12, 25-18, 23-25, 25-15)
Location: Athens, Ohio (Convocation Center)
Record: Ohio 24-6, Kent State 20-10
Short Story: The Ohio volleyball team (24-6) advanced to the Mid-American Conference tournament final with a 3-1 victory against Kent State (20-10), 3-0 (25-12, 25-18, 23-25, 25-15) on Saturday (Nov. 21) at the Convocation Center in Athens, Ohio. The Bobcats will advance to the tournament’s title game for the 10th time in program history where they sport an 8-1 record.

THE BASICS
• The Bobcats hit .274 (68 kills-17 errors-186 total attacks) while limiting the Flashes to a .132 clip (42 kills-19 errors-174 total attacks).
• Junior outside hitter/libero Mallory Salis (Oak Lawn, Ill.) racked up a match-high 17 kills and achieved a double-double with 18 digs for the Bobcats. She also tallied an assisted block.
• Sophomore outside hitter Jaime Kosiorek (Chagrin Falls, Ohio) chipped in 16 kills, two assisted blocks and six digs for Ohio.
• Senior middle blocker Karin Bull (Bloomington, Minn.) recorded nine kills and three block assists for the Bobcats. She hit a match-best .583 with no errors.
• Senior middle blocker/outside hitter Shelby Walker (Bradenton, Fla.) notched 10 kills, two assisted blocks and two digs for Ohio.
• Senior setter Abby Gilleland (Bull Valley, Ill.) dished out a match-high 58 assists to go along with eight kills, a service ace and 18 digs for the Bobcats.
• Senior libero Meredith Ashy (Louisville, Ky.) logged a team-high 31 digs for Ohio to go along with a service ace and an assist.
• Redshirt sophomore middle blocker Ali Lake (Liberty Township, Ohio) contributed eight kills, four digs and one assist for the Bobcats.
• Senior opposite Kelly Hutchison led Kent State with 16 kills and added 13 digs and two block assists.
• Junior right side hitter Amanda Bedell totaled nine kills and three assisted blocks for the Zips.
• Junior middle blocker Drew Norberg added 11 kills to go along with two block assists. • Sophomore libero Challen Geraghty notched a match-high 35 digs.
• Sophomore outside hitter Kelsey Bittinger tallied six kills and four block assists.
• Senior middle blocker Bridget Wilhelm had a match-high two blocked shots and five block assists.

HOW IT HAPPENED
• Ohio jumped out to a 17-4 lead in the opening set thanks to three kills by Gilleland, Kosiorek and Salis, and one each by Shelby Walker and Lake. Kent State countered with a 6-3 run to shave Ohio's lead to 20-10, but the Bobcats seized the 1-0 match lead with kills by Shelby Walker, Salis, Kosiorek and Lake.
• Kent State found itself with a 2-1 lead in the second set, but that would be the Flashes last lead saw in the set as Ohio took the second set by a seven-point margin. Kosiorek led the ‘Cats with four kills while Shelby Walker added three and Lake, Salis, Bull and Gilleland each notched two. Gilleland also contributed 13 assists.
• The Flashes took the third set 25-23. After falling behind 18-14 on a kill by Gilleland, Kent State put together an 11-5 run that included three kills by Hutchison and five errors on the Bobcats. Hutchison would record a set-high seven kills. Bull led the Bobcats with five kills in the set while Salis had four, Shelby Walker added three and Gilleland and Lake each contributed two kills. There were eight ties and three lead changes in the third set, while the first two sets saw two ties and one lead change.
• Ohio took a 10-7 lead in the fourth set and didn’t look back, finishing the set on a 15-8 run en route to a 25-15 score in the final set to give Ohio the victory. Kosiorek had seven kills in the set, Salis had five, Bull had two and Gilleland and Lake each chipped in one. Gilleland and Bull also added two blocks.

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
• The Bobcats advance to the MAC Tournament final for the 10th time in school history. Ohio is 8-1 in the title game.
• Ohio is now 49-20 (.710) all-time against Kent State and has taken 18 of its past 20 from the Flashes.
• The 102 digs for the Bobcats marked the most for Ohio in a four-set match in 2015.
• Salis notched her seventh double-double of the season and ninth of her career. She has recorded double-digit kills nine times this season and 12 times in her career and posted double-digit digs for the 17th time this season and 33rd time in her career.
• Gilleland recorded double-digit assists for the 30th time this season and 122nd time in her career. Her 58 assists tied her season-high and was her highest total in a four-set match. It also was the most assists by any player in the MAC this season in a four-set match.
• Ashy has achieved double-digit digs 26 times in 2015 -- including at least 20 for the 14th time. She has notched double-digit digs 110 times in her career -- including 20 or more 45 times.

QUOTABLE
"It’s what we were hoping for. It’s what we’ve been working towards all year. … It was great to get a win, and not just to get a win, but I loved how we responded tonight when things got tight. Call it a hiccup or whatever you want in the third set. … It’s embracing the struggle. We know it’s going to come every match, so let’s embrace it when it gets here. I just loved how we responded in the fourth." - Second-Year Head Coach Deane Webb

WHAT'S NEXT
No. 2-seeded Ohio will play No. 1-seeded Northern Illinois in the MAC Championship final on Sunday (Nov. 22). The Huskies defeated Miami 3-1 in their semifinal match on Saturday. The match will get underway at 7:30 p.m. ET at the Convocation Center.

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