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Score: Miami 3, Ohio 0 (25-22, 25-19, 25-18)
Location: Oxford, Ohio (Millett Hall)
Record: Ohio 6-9 (2-1 MAC), Miami 11-4 (3-0 MAC)
Short Story: The Ohio volleyball team (6-9, 2-1 MAC) suffered its first league loss of the 2016 season, dropping a 3-0 (25-22, 25-19, 25-18) decision to Mid-American Conference East Division archrival Miami (11-4, 3-0 MAC) on Thursday (Sept. 29) in a Battle Of The Bricks matchup at Millett Hall in Oxford, Ohio. 

THE BASICS
• The Bobcats were held to a .125 (30 kills-18 errors-96 total attacks) hitting percentage while the RedHawks attacked at a .302 (42 kills-13 errors-96 total attacks) pace. Miami led the match in total team blocks (7.0-5.0), assists (40-27) and digs (39-38).
• Redshirt junior middle blocker Ali Lake (Liberty Township, Ohio) led Ohio with eight kills and hit .400 (eight kills-two errros-15 total attacks). She also added an assisted block.
• Senior outside hitter/libero Mallory Salis (Oak Lawn, Ill.) posted seven kills, two assisted blocks, a service ace and two digs for the Bobcats.
• Redshirt sophomore middle blocker Katie Nelson (Regina, Saskatchewan) compiled a team-high five total blocks (one solo, four assisted) for Ohio and also chipped in five kills and a dig.
• Sophomore libero Erica Walker (Wheaton, Ill.) tallied a match-high two service aces and 10 digs for the Bobcats. She also had three assists.
• Sophomore setter/outside hitter Stephanie Olman (Maumee, Ohio) dished out a team-high 13 assists for Ohio. She also recorded two kills and six digs.
• Freshman setter Katelyn Burke (Oswego, Ill.) notched 10 assists and three digs.
• Senior middle hitter Paige Hill led Miami with a match-high tying 10 kills and a match-high six total blocks (one solo, five assisted). She attacked at a .500 (10 kills-two errors-16 total attacks) pace.
• Junior outside hitter/right side Katie Tomasic tied Hill for the match lead with 10 kills. She also contributed three assisted blocks and a dig for the RedHawks. She hit .316 (10 kills-four errors-19 total attacks).
• Junior outside hitter Olivia Rusek logged seven kills, three assisted blocks and four digs for Miami.
• Redshirt sophomore setter Mackenzie Zielinski totaled a match-high 18 assists and tallied the lone service ace of the match for the RedHawks. She also had seven digs.
• Junior libero Maeve McDonald led Miami with eight digs. She also posted two assists.

HOW IT HAPPENED
• Ohio utilized a double blocker by Salis and Nelson, kills by Lake, Nelson and Salis and a double block by Nelson and junior outside hitter Jaime Kosiorek (Chagrin Falls, Ohio) to grab a 9-6 lead in the opening set. Miami countered with a 6-1 run that featured a pair of kills by both Tomasic and senior outside hitter Maris Below and a kill by junior middle hitter/right side Meredith Stutz to take a 12-10 edge. Kills by Salis and freshman middle blocker/outside hitter Sara Januszewski (Oak Creek, Wis.) allowed the Bobcats to even the set score at 12-all, but the RedHawks responded with a 5-2 to spurt that gave them a 17-14 advantage. Back-to-back kills by Hill and a kill by Tomasic helped Miami regain control. Ohio managed to make it a one-point set seven times but got no closer to the lead and the RedHawks grabbed a 1-0 match lead after kills by sophomore outside hitter/right side Stela Kukoc and Rusek closed out the set victory.
• Miami took advantage of four kills by Hill and kills by Below, Kukoc and Stutz to take a 10-7 lead in the second set. Ohio fought back with a 6-2 run that gave the Bobcats a 13-12 edge. The stretch was highlighted by kills by Januszewski and Kosiorek and a double block by Nelson and Lake. Unfortunately for Ohio, the RedHawks rattled off five-straight points to take a 17-13 lead and control of the set as Tomasic, Rusek and Hill all produced kills. A double block by Nelson and Salis ended the Miami run after a timeout, but the Bobcats never trailed by less than four points for the remainder of the set as Rusek added two more kills and Stutz and Tomasic each added kills for the RedHawks down the stretch.
• The RedHawks jumped out to an 8-2 lead in the third set and never looked back. Kills by Tomasic and Rusek, a solo block by Hill and back-to-back double blocks by Hill and Rusek helped build the early advantage for Miami. A kill by Salis and back-to-back service aces by Walker trimmed Miami's lead down to four points at 16-12, but the RedHawks' lead reached seven points at 20-13 after kills by Rusek and Kukoc. The Bobcats made it a four-point set again at 21-17 thanks to a pair of kills by Lake, a service ace by Salis and a solo block by Nelson, but Miami closed the match out courtesy of a double block by Hill and Tomasic and a kill by Hill.

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
• Thursday's defeat snapped a season-long three-match winning streak for Ohio.
• The Bobcats dropped to 31-38 (.449) all-time against Miami.
• Nelson has now tallied at least five blocks three times this year and seven times in her career.
• Walker has now recorded double-digit digs three times this season and 13 times in her career.

QUOTABLE
Third-year head coach Deane Webb on the loss
"We passed well tonight, but our decisions as attackers were not good. I am thankful we have the opportunity to get back on the court tomorrow to improve."

UP NEXT
The Bobcats look to bounce back on Friday (Sept. 30) when they visit MAC East Division rival Bowling Green (10-5, 0-2 MAC). The match is set to begin at 7 p.m. ET at the Stroh Center and will be streamed live on WatchESPN and the ESPN app.

#BleedGreen