ATHENS, Ohio – The Ohio volleyball team (1-0, 0-0 MAC) kicked of the season and the Bobcat Invitational with a 3-1 win (25-23, 25-21, 21-25, 25-21) against Bucknell (0-2, 0-0 Patriot League). The win signified the first of interim head coach Kenzie Brinkman's career.  

"I love these girls, I love everything about them," Brinkman said. "For them to go out there and play like that…doing something that I absolutely love and watching them do something that they love was special." 

Ohio's freshman played a big role in the team's first win of the season. Freshman Mady Long (Vincent, Ohio) led the way for Ohio with 11 kills and 14 digs. Her freshman counterpart, Bailey Blair (Louisville, Ky.), also made the most of her first game as a Bobcat, tallying 12 kills and two aces.  

Juniors Olivia Gardner (Macomb, Mich.) and Emily Waddell (Carmel, Ind.) each contributed double-digit kills for the Bobcats while junior Gentry Brown (Shadyside, Ohio) recorded nine.  

Junior Kendall Hickey (Fishers, Ind.) contributed 13 digs in the winning effort, with sophomores Brynn Janke (Westfield, Wis.) and Darbi Ricketts (Cincinnati, Ohio) recording seven and eight digs, respectively.  

Set one began with Bucknell taking an early 18-12 lead, highlighted by a 6-0 run against the Bobcats. Ohio quickly turned things around with an 8-2 run to end the set that would secure a close 25-23 win to take a 1-0 lead. Long capped off the set with a powerful kill for the win.  

The Bobcats started the second set with a commanding 14-6 lead, highlighted by a 9-1 run. Ohio would allow Bucknell to get within 2 points at 23-21, but finished strong to win its second straight set.  

Bucknell battled back in set three to avoid the sweep, winning 25-21. The Bobcats kept it close, trailing by just one at 21-20 before the Bison pulled away to win the set.  

After losing its first set of the day, Ohio played its best in set four, going on an early 7-0 scoring run to take an 8-3 lead. The Bobcats continued to play with energy throughout the fourth set, winning it 25-21 and the match 3-1.  

"I think just playing the game of volleyball and having fun with it, obviously, there's pressure, we lost some players, but we also got a couple of players," Gardner said. "It's just cool to see all of us work together and play like we did." 

The Bobcats will be back in action at The Convo against Iowa State on Saturday, Aug. 30, at 5 p.m. ET.  

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