Pacific Tigers outlasted by Ohio State, 1-3 – Volleyball news
The Pacific Tigers recently travelled to Columbus, Ohio State, in order to take part in the Ken and Dave Dunlap Invitational.
The Tigers crossed their ways with the hosts on the Friday, January 27 and received 1-3 (25-19, 20-25, 18-25, 21-25) defeat. The 10th-ranked Buckeyes played in their usual style and easily managed to overcome the opponent at the St, Johns Arena.
The Ohio State had the competitive edge of playing at the home court and totally benefitted the advantage. The top gun of Buckeyes, Shawn Sangrey, played an instrumental role in the match and led his team to success with his 26 kills.
Furthermore, the other players of Ohio State performed up to mark and contributed to the overall success of the team. Mik Berzins and Grayson Overman tallied 15 and 9 kills, respectively.
On the defence side, John Tholen and Peter Heinen did an exceptional job. Tholen recorded five blocks, while Heinen registered team-high 52 assists. Overall, the Buckeyes put up a great team effort and defeated the opponent.
Florian Gornik was the top-scorer on Pacific with a total of 18 points, which included 16 kills and six blocks. His teammate Taylor Hughes registered team-high 32 digs, in addition to his12 kills and three blocks in the match.
The guest team opened the match on a high note and picked up an early lead of 6-1. The Buckeyes spent some time to settle down in their positions and closely examined the movements of opponents. They grasped the game plan and hit back.
However, the Tigers kept on moving ahead at same pace. They attacked through Gornik and Christian Ahlin, who further stretched the gap of points. The Buckeyes could only see the Pacific Tigers stealing first set victory from them. The Ohio State suffered
the loss of opening set by trailing behind with six points, 19-25.
The Tigers entered the second set with confidence of one set-win in hand and added quick points. Nevertheless, the Buckeyes could understand the game strategy of Tigers after the loss of opening set. They came up with back row attack and directed the ball
in rare gaps.
Ohio State gradually got better and shortened the gap of points. They locked Tigers behind the attack line and went up on the scoreboard. The Tigers resisted but could not help the situation, while the Buckeyes evened the game score at 1-1 by winning second
set, 25-20.
After the tie of scores in the match, each side tried to make a difference in the third set. Third set put both teams to a real test. Long rallies were exchanged and ball kept rolling in the air for better time in the third set.
The Tigers committed some attack errors, which promptly helped Ohio State to take lead. The Buckeyes covered the length of third set and extended their lead to 2-1. They pulled off success by scoring 25-18 in third set.
The Buckeyes attained a great rhythm in the fourth set and seemed totally prepared to put an end to the show. They rallied 5-0 run to convert their lead of 6-4 into 11-4 in the fourth set. Tigers lost the track and could not return in the game. Home team
claimed fourth set (25-21) and announced match victory.
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