The No. 1 Ohio State University men’s volleyball team hosts its last two home matches of February this week before heading to Grand Canyon during the final week of the month. Conference foes Quincy and Lindenwood are set to visit St. John Arena on Friday (Feb. 17) at 7 p.m. and 4 p.m. on Sunday (Feb. 19), respectively.
WEEKLY BASICS
Friday, Feb. 17 – Columbus, Ohio (St. John Arena)
7 p.m. ET – #1 Ohio State (13-0, 4-0 MIVA) vs. Quincy (3-8, 1-4 MIVA)
Live Stats: GameTracker
Video Stream: BTN Plus
Sunday, Feb. 19 – Columbus, Ohio (St. John Arena)
4 p.m. ET – #1 Ohio State vs. Lindenwood (0-10, 0-6 MIVA)
Live Stats: GameTracker
Video Stream: BTN Plus
STREAK SNIPPETS
• Ohio State is riding a 36-match winning streak
• Marks the longest winning streak in OSU Athletics history for teams competing in head-to-head competition
• The Buckeyes last suffered an NCAA loss on February 6, 2016 (vs. Ball State)
• Ohio State has won 108 of 128 sets (84%) during the victorious stretch
• The streak includes six wins over Top-5 opponents and half (18) against teams ranked inside the Top-12
• Also included in the streak are 16 straight wins in true road matches
• Loyola owns 40-match run in 2014-15 while UCLA is believed to own the all-time record of 47 straight (1983-85)
HISTORY WITH THE HAWKS AND LIONS
Ohio State owns a 51-2 stronghold in the all-time series against Quincy, including a 31-0 record inside St. John Arena. The Buckeyes have dropped only 14 sets in 53 meetings dating back to the original clash back in 1993. The Lindenwood ledger is much shorter, but no less dominated by Ohio State. The Buckeyes have all eight matches versus the Lions.
THIRD STRAIGHT CONFERENCE AWARD GOES TO Miles Johnson
For the third time in as many weeks, Miles Johnson was named the Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association’s Offensive Player of the Week on Tuesday (Feb. 14). Johnson is the first conference player to win three consecutive MIVA Player of the Week awards in six years as fellow Buckeye Shawn Sangrey accomplished the feat most recently on Feb. 22, Feb. 28 and March 7, 2011.
Ohio has captured the league’s offensive player of the week accolade in four of seven weeks thus far this season. In one of the ‘off’ weeks, Gabriel Domecus ensured the Buckeyes would still be represented, picking up MIVA Defensive Player of the Week laurels.
THE ACE RACE
Miles Johnson surpassed Buckeye great Steve Potter (1992-95) with his 124th career service ace on Jan. 28 vs. Long Beach State, becoming Ohio State’s all-time career leader for aces. Johnson’s sole ownership of the school record lasted just 37 minutes, however, as Nicolas Szerszen also tallied his 124th ace to pull even atop the list later in that same match. Szerszen is now a few steps ahead at 135 aces while Johnson remains in the hunt with 127 aces.
The aforementioned dynamic duo does not represent the only Buckeyes chasing all-time career marks. Christy Blough, Gabriel Domecus and Driss Guessous are climbing up the school rankings as well. A comprehensive look at the ‘Career Records Watch’ can be found on Page 6 of the match notes.
AND THEN THERE WAS ONE
The Buckeyes received an assist from Big Ten brethren Penn State on Jan. 28 by handing Coker College its first loss of 2017, ensuring Ohio State as the country’s only remaining undefeated squad.
STATISTICALLY SPEAKING
Ohio State is not only 13-0 and the top-ranked team in the land, but is also slotted highly in nearly every statistical category. The Buckeyes lead nationally in kills (13.91/set), hitting percentage (.380) and assists (12.93/set). Ohio State ranks Top-5 in the NCAA 2.60 blocks/set (2nd), 1.93 aces/set (3rd) and an opponent hitting percentage of .189 (5th) as well.
Individually, three Buckeyes can be found in the Top-10 of at least one NCAA statistical category. Miles Johnson’s 5.49 points per set are tops in the country while Nicolas Szerszen’s 5.09 points/set are slotted fourth. Szerszen leads a category of his own, posting an NCAA-best .74 aces per set. Both Buckeye pin hitters rank highly in kills/set as well with Johnson slotted third (4.62) and Szerszen coming in at seventh (4.09). Johnson rounds out his lofty numbers attacking .442, the ninth-highest rate in the country. In addition, Christy Blough’s 11.48 assists/set have not only aided the Johnson-Szerszen offensive output, but also pace the entire NCAA.
News courtesy of Ohio State Athletics.
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