DAYTON, Ohio – The Ohio volleyball team (4-2, 0-0 MAC) split the second day of the Dayton Flyer Classic with a 3-1 win (23-25, 25-17, 25-20, 25-21) against North Dakota State (4-2, 0-0 SL) and a 2-3 loss (25-21, 25-21, 22-25, 17-25, 11-15) to Dayton (5-1, 0-0 A10) on Saturday.
 
MATCH 1 vs NDSU (3-1; 23-25, 25-17, 25-20, 25-21)
 Despite making an impressive comeback, Ohio fell to 25-23 to North Dakota State in the first of the match.
 
NDSU led for majority of the match, but two 3-0 scoring runs by the Bobcats shortened the Bison's lead. With a block by senior Elizabeth Hoerlein (Mason, Ohio), Ohio was able to force an NDSU attack error and make it a one-point set. Junior Caroline Clippard (Cincinnati, Ohio) led both teams with six kills and points.
 
Ohio answered back with a 25-17 win in the second set, evening the match score at 1-1. The Bobcats dominated offensively with 17 kills to North Dakota State's seven. In an impressive feat, Ohio was able to maintain the lead throughout the entire set.
 
Although the winning point came from a bad set by the Bison, sophomore Anna Kharchynska's (Kyiv, Ukraine) kill forced set point and put the Bobcats up 24-16. At the end of the second, Ohio's players led in six different categories including kills, hitting, digs, assists, blocking and points.
 
It was tight third set as both teams fought to gain the 2-1 advantage. The Bobcats came out on top with a 25-20 win over NDSU. After several ties and lead changes, Ohio broke the one-point scoring margin with back-to-back kills by graduate student Caitlin O'Farrell (Suwanee, Ga.) and Hoerlein. An attack error by the Bison led to set point and a kill by graduate student Parker Kwiatkowski (Grand Rapids, Mich.) secured the set for Ohio.
 
Ohio came out on top after another close set with the Bison. The Bobcats earned the 3-1 victory with a 25-21 win in the fourth. Match point was forced by another kill from Kharchynska and an attack error by NDSU gave Ohio its winning point.

MATCH 2 vs. DAYTON (2-3; 25-21, 25-21, 22-25, 17-25, 11-15)
Ohio took an early 1-0 lead over Dayton after earning a 25-21 win in the first set. After being tied at 19-19, the Bobcats took a two-point lead off an attack error by Dayton and kill by Ohio's O'Farrell. The Bobcats increased their lead with strong offensive play by Clippard and freshman Kam Hunt (Sylvania, Ohio), who combined for majority of the team's kills.
 
The Bobcats continued their success in the second set with another 25-21 win over the Flyers. After being tied for a good part of the set, Ohio gained a 21-19 lead off a Dayton attack error and kill by O'Farrell. In collaboration with Clippard and Hunt, O'Farrell was a major contributor to the Bobcats' offense in the second set.
 
Dayton evened the match score to 2-2 after winning the third (25-22) and fourth set (25-17). The Flyers ultimately won the match after defeating Ohio, 15-11, in the final set.

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