ATHENS, Ohio —This week, Ohio volleyball will officially begin its 2023 season and quest for a MAC Championship.
Last season, the Bobcats finished second in the Mid-American Conference East and were seeded third in the MAC Tournament. However, Ohio lost in the first round to Buffalo.
The loss may have stung, but Ohio's veterans have turned it into fuel for the 2023 season. Ohio's roster features 12 returners, including All-MAC First Team honorees Caitlin O'Farrell and Caroline Clippard. Also returning is All-Freshman team honoree Anna Kharchynska. Other notable returners are seniors Sam Steele, Tria McLean and Elizabeth Hoerlein.
"We have a really awesome mix of senior leadership from the top down," head coach Geoff Carlston said. "Then we have six new freshmen that are bringing a youthful bliss into what we are doing."
O'Farrell had the 10th-best hitting percentage in the MAC last season (.297), the seventh-most points per set (3.50 points) and the eighth-most kills per set (3.09 kills). Steele had the seventh-most digs (4.43 digs) and McLean had the ninth-most assists per set (6.89 assists).
Veteran leadership is going to help Ohio throughout the course of its season when it faces familiar opponents in nonconference and MAC play.
The Bobcats will start their season at the LD&B Invitational in Harrisonburg, Virginia, where they will take on James Madison, UMBC and High Point. Then, they travel to Dayton, Ohio, for the Dayton Flyer Classic. Ohio will take on Butler to start the Dayton Flyer Classic, which it beat last season 3-0. It will play North Dakota State and Dayton on day two of the tournament.
Ohio will host the Bobcat Invitational from Sept. 7-9. It will take on UTEP, North Carolina State and William & Mary. After that, Ohio will travel to Ames, Iowa for the Cyclone Invitational where it will play Drake, Iowa State and UC-Santa Barbara.
The Bobcats' nonconference schedule will help them reach their goal of an NCAA Tournament because it moves them into a better position to receive an at-large bid. However, Ohio could enter the tournament outright by succeeding in the MAC.
Ohio's MAC schedule is set to begin with a three-match home stand. It will play Akron on Sept. 22 and 23, and then a single match against Kent State on Sept. 26. Ohio will then hit the road for a two-match series against Buffalo.
The Bobcats will spend the first half of October on their home court before ending the month with a four-match road trip. Ohio is set to take on rival Miami on Oct. 20 and 21 in Oxford, Ohio, before heading to Toledo and Ball State for one-off matches. Last season, Ohio snapped Ball State's 13-match win streak.
Competition is historically tough in the MAC, and this year is no different.
"In the MAC, we had two, three, four teams make the NCAA Tournament last year and six or seven in the postseason. It is a really strong conference in volleyball and I think this year will be no different," Carlston said.
Ohio has not won a MAC Championship since 2015 and it has not been to the NCAA Tournament since that same season. Ohio did participate in the postseason last year by hosting the NIVC, however, the NCAA Tournament is its goal for 2023.
Carlston believes that his team has the makings to make it to the MAC Tournament and the NCAA Tournament.
"We can challenge this team, even with six freshmen, we can challenge this team and expect more than we have in the past years," Carlston said.
The Bobcats have grown as a team, and they're hungry to win.
#OUohyeah
