The Ohio State Women's Volleyball Team loses four key contributors for next year.
Mari Hole, an outside hitter from Oslo Norway, will never be forgotten in Columbus. Not only was she Ohio State's best player for two years but she could go down as one of the greats, if not the greatest, in program history.
They call her an outside hitter, but Hole could have been dominate with any role on this team. I am continuously impressed by her ability on the defensive side. Not only is she talented but she is a hard worker, always showing off even more hustle than her teammates, which isn't an easy task.
Hole finished her senior year with 548 kills, 48 assists, and 18 aces on offense. Defensively the Norwegian had 326 digs and 56 total blocks.
Along side Hole's All-American banner in St. John Arena is another banner with the name Emily Danks. Danks is a truly fun player to watch, especially from the service line. She will go down as Ohio State's best server ever as she broke the school's ace record mid-way through Big Ten play.
While she had hot and cold streaks throughout the year Emily Danks was always important and a big part of Ohio State's success this year.
Danks finished the season with 327 kills, 33 assists, and 50 (!) aces. The outside hitter from Round Rock, Texas also added 178 digs and 93 blocks (1st on the team, more than any middle blocker).
Amanda Peterson was Ohio State's usual setter, and she may be my favorite player form this year's squad. While there were times when she saw her self on the bench in favor of Taylor Sherwin, Peterson was a steadying force for the Buckeyes.
Out of Glen Ellyn, Illinois, Peterson finished her final season in Columbus with 1,022 assists, 106 kills, and 14 aces. She also chipped in with 237 digs and 53 blocks.
Mariah Booth is the final senior from this team. Will over-aggressive at times, Booth is a player that Ohio State will miss. When she is on Booth is one of the most dangerous middle-blockers around. Very athletic and aggressive, in my opinion Booth was underutilized during the season.
Out of Kennesaw, Gergia, Booth had a productive senior year. She tallied 241 kills, 11 assists, and 6 aces along with 66 digs and 85 total blocks.
Thanks Seniors!
Wednesday, December 5, 2012
Ohio State Women's Volleyball: MVP and Breakout Player
After covering Ohio State Women's Volleyball all season, two players stood out above the rest for me. One of them I would call the team's MVP (and it's not close) and the other is the team's breakout player of the year (in my opinion).
Starting off with the obvious, Mari Hole was far and away the most important and most talented player on this team. She consistently brought astounding performances in all aspects of the game. Not only was she Ohio State's most dangerous outside hitter, but Hole was also Ohio State's best passer in 2012. While Davi DiSalvatore picked up more digs, it was Hole who truly carried the defense at times.
This senior should absolutely be an All-American selection, it would be the second year in a row.
Now, onto the team's breakout player of the year.
Kaitlyn Leary truly stepped it up, especially towards the end of the season. While Hole and Danks got the headlines it was Leary who improved the most. When Emily Danks struggled (at least by her standards) towards the end of the year, Leary came in and was a dangerous second option behind Hole. At times she was even the first option.
Leary's impact on this year's team was truly summed up in the teams NCAA Tournament opening victory over Notre Dame. Leary finished the match with 16 kills and 0 errors.
Watch out Big Ten, Ohio State may be losing Danks and Hole but Leary is looking like a budding All-American as well.
Ohio State Women's Volleyball: NCAA Tournament Round 2
After an impressive Tournament opening sweep of Notre Dame, Ohio State matched up against Kentucky in the second round. That is especially unfortunate considering that Kentucky was hosting in Lexington, giving them a home court advantage.
Even still, the Buckeyes came out firing as they picked up a 25-18 first set win. Unfortunately it was all downhill from there. The Buckeyes fought to a 24-26 loss in set two before being demolished for the next two sets, 15-25 and 18-25. This match brought their season to an end but it was still an impressive run for the squad.
In the last match of her Ohio State career Mari Hole did what she could, picking up 18 kills but also making a few mistakes with 9 errors. Kaitlyn Leary continued her late season surge with 14 kills while Mariah Booth added 9. Emily Danks wasn't as effective as normal, she only had 6 kills on a measly 22 attempts, although she did add 2 service aces.
Amanda Peterson had 40 assists, but they came on 99 total attempts. Mari Hole also picked up 12 digs while Davi Disalvatore led the D with 16 digs.
For the Wildcats, Lauren O'Conner led the way with 16 kills. Alexandra Morgan and Whitney Billings chipped in with 10 kills each. Kentucky came up with only 15 hitting errors for the match which may have been the difference maker. Ohio State had 23.
The service line was another measuring stick of how this match progressed. Ohio State had only 4 aces compared to 8 service errors while Kentucky picked up a whopping 10 aces to go with 9 errors.
The Buckeyes finished their season with a 23-11 overall record after going 13-7 in the Big Ten Conference.
Even still, the Buckeyes came out firing as they picked up a 25-18 first set win. Unfortunately it was all downhill from there. The Buckeyes fought to a 24-26 loss in set two before being demolished for the next two sets, 15-25 and 18-25. This match brought their season to an end but it was still an impressive run for the squad.
In the last match of her Ohio State career Mari Hole did what she could, picking up 18 kills but also making a few mistakes with 9 errors. Kaitlyn Leary continued her late season surge with 14 kills while Mariah Booth added 9. Emily Danks wasn't as effective as normal, she only had 6 kills on a measly 22 attempts, although she did add 2 service aces.
Amanda Peterson had 40 assists, but they came on 99 total attempts. Mari Hole also picked up 12 digs while Davi Disalvatore led the D with 16 digs.
For the Wildcats, Lauren O'Conner led the way with 16 kills. Alexandra Morgan and Whitney Billings chipped in with 10 kills each. Kentucky came up with only 15 hitting errors for the match which may have been the difference maker. Ohio State had 23.
The service line was another measuring stick of how this match progressed. Ohio State had only 4 aces compared to 8 service errors while Kentucky picked up a whopping 10 aces to go with 9 errors.
The Buckeyes finished their season with a 23-11 overall record after going 13-7 in the Big Ten Conference.
Ohio State Women's Volleyball: NCAA Tournament Round 1
When the Ohio State Women's Volleyball season ended, I was certainly hoping the OSU would get a chance to host in the NCAA Tournament. Even after dropping the season finale at home to Michigan, I though that this team had proven they deserved a chance to have a home court advantage. Not only was the team very good all season long, but the fans at St. John provided one of the best atmospheres in Women's Volleyball on a regular basis.
Alas, Ohio State did not get a chance to host and found out they were headed to Lexington, KY where they would be taking on Notre Dame in Round 1.
No matter what, you can't take a tournament game for granted and Ohio State did not. The Buckeye women came out in dominating fashion winning the first set 25-16. Ohio State then completed the sweep with set wins of 25-21 and 25-17.
Just as she has all season long, Mari Hole played well for the Buckeyes as she put down 14 kills compared to only 4 errors. The real star, though, was Kaitlyn Leary. Leary finished the match with 16 kills and no errors, which is truly astounding. Mariah booth chipped in with 9 kills while Emily Danks did her part, putting down 8 with 0 errors.
Amanda Peterson had 42 assists and Davi DiSalvatore picked up 13 digs.
Alas, Ohio State did not get a chance to host and found out they were headed to Lexington, KY where they would be taking on Notre Dame in Round 1.
No matter what, you can't take a tournament game for granted and Ohio State did not. The Buckeye women came out in dominating fashion winning the first set 25-16. Ohio State then completed the sweep with set wins of 25-21 and 25-17.
Just as she has all season long, Mari Hole played well for the Buckeyes as she put down 14 kills compared to only 4 errors. The real star, though, was Kaitlyn Leary. Leary finished the match with 16 kills and no errors, which is truly astounding. Mariah booth chipped in with 9 kills while Emily Danks did her part, putting down 8 with 0 errors.
Amanda Peterson had 42 assists and Davi DiSalvatore picked up 13 digs.
Ohio State Women's Volleyball: Regular Season Review
The Ohio State Women's Volleyball team has wrapped up their season, and what a year it was. The Buckeye women wrapped up regular season play with a 22-10 overall record, they went 13-7 in the conference. This included a 7-6 record at home and an 11-2 mark on the road.
To review the season's exploits we can start with the season opening Sports Imports DC Koehl Classic at St. John Arena. The Buckeyes opened play vs. Houston, winning 3-0, the next day Ohio State played twice, beating Toledo 3-0 before dropping the tournament championship to Oregon, 2-3.
The next week, the Buckeyes traveled to College Park for the Maryland Invitational. They opened up tournament play with a 3-0 victory against Binghamton. On the first of September Ohio State captured the tournament victory two wins, a sweep of Seton Hall and a 3-2 win against Maryland in the finale.
After College Park the team looked towards Bowling Green, KY for the WKU Tournament. Ohio State got another title as they won all three of their matches. Opening the tournament the Buckeye Women picked up a big 3-2 win against then #10 Dayton. OSU then beat IUPUI 3-1 before closing out Western Kentucky with another 3-1 win.
Ohio State's last pre-season tournament was the Flo Hyman Collegiate Cup in Houston, Texas. The Buckeyes picked up two losses at this tournament but still won their last game. Geoff Carlston and his team opened play with a 0-3 loss to Pepperdine before falling to Florida State 1-3. The Buckeyes closed the tournament on a high note with a 3-1 victory against Houston.
From their Big Ten play finally got under way with the Buckeyes opening their regular season in dominating fashion, beating Iowa 3-0 at home. After that the Buckeyes fell to Nebraska (1-3) at home before traveling to Minnesota and dropping their second straight (0-3). The Women took a four game winning streak into the Purdue game after wins over Wisconsin, Illinois, Northwestern, and Indiana. The Buckeyes again dropped two straight, both at home, with a 1-3 loss to Purdue and an 0-3 loss to Penn State. The Buckeyes won their next four games, over Michigan State, Nebraska, Iowa, and Wisconsin, then lost to Minnesota yet again. That loss marked a short blip before another four game winning streak, the Buckeye Women then closed their season with two straight losses, one at Penn State before dropping the season finale at home against That Team Up North.
To review the season's exploits we can start with the season opening Sports Imports DC Koehl Classic at St. John Arena. The Buckeyes opened play vs. Houston, winning 3-0, the next day Ohio State played twice, beating Toledo 3-0 before dropping the tournament championship to Oregon, 2-3.
The next week, the Buckeyes traveled to College Park for the Maryland Invitational. They opened up tournament play with a 3-0 victory against Binghamton. On the first of September Ohio State captured the tournament victory two wins, a sweep of Seton Hall and a 3-2 win against Maryland in the finale.
After College Park the team looked towards Bowling Green, KY for the WKU Tournament. Ohio State got another title as they won all three of their matches. Opening the tournament the Buckeye Women picked up a big 3-2 win against then #10 Dayton. OSU then beat IUPUI 3-1 before closing out Western Kentucky with another 3-1 win.
Ohio State's last pre-season tournament was the Flo Hyman Collegiate Cup in Houston, Texas. The Buckeyes picked up two losses at this tournament but still won their last game. Geoff Carlston and his team opened play with a 0-3 loss to Pepperdine before falling to Florida State 1-3. The Buckeyes closed the tournament on a high note with a 3-1 victory against Houston.
From their Big Ten play finally got under way with the Buckeyes opening their regular season in dominating fashion, beating Iowa 3-0 at home. After that the Buckeyes fell to Nebraska (1-3) at home before traveling to Minnesota and dropping their second straight (0-3). The Women took a four game winning streak into the Purdue game after wins over Wisconsin, Illinois, Northwestern, and Indiana. The Buckeyes again dropped two straight, both at home, with a 1-3 loss to Purdue and an 0-3 loss to Penn State. The Buckeyes won their next four games, over Michigan State, Nebraska, Iowa, and Wisconsin, then lost to Minnesota yet again. That loss marked a short blip before another four game winning streak, the Buckeye Women then closed their season with two straight losses, one at Penn State before dropping the season finale at home against That Team Up North.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)