#1 Ohio State Sweeps #10 Stanford on First Night of Double Header

Match Stats

• #1 Ohio State def. #10 Stanford 3-0 (25-23, 25-21, 25-19)
• Ohio State moves to 4-0, Stanford falls to 3-1
• Maples Pavilion, Stanford, California
• Attendance: 653
• Match Stats

In the first night of back-to-back games between top 10 opponents, #1 Ohio State swept #10 Stanford on Friday night on the road thanks to an overwhelming offensive attack.

The Buckeyes, who are perfect this season since losing to top Canadian team McMaster in their opener, hit .403 in the game, including a whopping .520 in the second set. That is a season-high for Ohio State.

They also rank in the top 4 nationally in limiting their opponents’ hitting percentage, and in spite of being out-blocked 9-7, still managed to limit the home team Cardinal to just a .157 hitting percentage. The Cardinal had ranked 3rd nationally in hitting percentage coming into the game, but hit at less-than-half of their normal efficiency rating on Friday.

The one spot where Ohio State struggled in the game, and have all year, was from the service line. They had 21 service errors and only 4 aces to match with them. So far this season, they’ve averaged 6.2 service errors per game, which is well above the 4.2 they averaged in 2016 on their way to an NCAA title. Those errors kept the game close even as Stanford struggled to find holes in the Buckeye defense.

The Cardinal as a team struggled offensively, but starting outside hitter Jordan Ewert was the exception. He recorded a career high 16 kills, in spite of just 3 sets in which to get them, and hit .323 on the match. He’s hitting .358 overall in 2017, with double-digit kills  in 3 of his 4 games so far. Stephen Moye also chipped in 6 blocks (5 assists, 1 solo) for the Cardinal.

Ohio Stsate had three players in double digits, and all hit over .300 – Miles Johnson (13 kills, 3 errors, 21 attacks, .476); Nicolas Szerszen (12k, 4e, 24ta, .333), and Driss Guessous (10k, 3e, 14ta, .500).

The two teams will play again at 7PM Pacific Time on Saturday, where the series will shift to the Burnham Pavilion & Ford Center – the alternate home for Stanford men’s volleyball. That game can be watched on the Pac-12 Networks here.

Videos

???? Who says there aren't long rallies in men's volleyball » https://t.co/2FviU0jrb5

— Men's Volleyball (@StanfordMVB) January 14, 2017

Press Releases

Courtesy Ohio State:

STANFORD, Calif. – The No. 1 Ohio State University men’s volleyball team stormed into Maples Pavilion Friday night, bombarding The Cardinal with 44 kills while attacking .403 as a team. Ohio State out-killed Stanford by 18, sweeping the nation’s 10th-ranked squad in successively improving manner – adding two points to its winning margin in each subsequent set (25-23, 25-21, 25-19).

The Buckeyes have now notched 27 consecutive wins dating back to Feb. 6, 2016. Ohio State has won 81 of 99 sets during the victorious stretch and the streak includes 12 straight triumphs in true road matches.

Miles Johnson and Nicolas Szerszen were responsible for nearly 60 percent of Ohio State’s points, piling up 13 kills at a .476 hitting clip and 12 kills at a .333 attacking rate, respectively. Driss Guessous chipped in 11.5 points as well, posting 10 kills and three block assists. Overall, the Buckeyes attacked .403 with Christy Blough averaging 13 assists per set and tying for the team lead with a half dozen digs.

Ohio State took control early on and trailed for only one rally, 2-1 in the third set, throughout the entire evening. In fact, the score squared up all even on just 12 occasions in the Top-10 contest.

Set 1: Johnson got it going right away in the night’s most highly-contested frame, a 25-23 squeaker in the first. The Carlsbad, Calif., native sole-handedly matched Stanford’s six-kill team total to help counterbalance the Buckeyes’ nine service errors. The Cardinal rejected five OSU attack attempts as well, keeping the ledger tight. Blough ultimately connected with Szerszen for a set-clinching kill at 25-23, however.

Set 2: Johnson continued to bring it in the second stanza, driving home five more kills to lead the way. Szerszen actually paced the team on total points though, complimenting his three kills with two aces and a pair of block assists. He bonded with Blake Leeson for the latter denial, again securing the 25th Buckeye tally (25-23).

Set 3: An elongated service stay by Reese Devilbiss broke up the floodgates for Ohio State in the third. Knotted at 4-4, Devilbiss’ serving shift finished off a 6-0 run which proved to be too much to overcome for Stanford by set’s end. The Cardinal lurched back within two tallies thrice before the Buckeyes regained the six-point cushion in a closing 25-19 score.

Same teams. Same time. Different location. A rematch will take place Saturday night, moving from Maples Pavilion to Burnham Pavilion & Ford Center.

Courtesy Stanford:

STANFORD, Calif. – Despite a career-high 15 kills by Jordan Ewert, the 10th-ranked Stanford men’s volleyball dropped a 25-23, 25-21, 25-19 decision to visiting No. 1 Ohio State, Friday, in Maples Pavilion.

Ewert, an outside hitter from Antioch, California, hit .323 in the match while also tallying four digs and a block. However, Stanford (3-1) was held to a .157 team attack percentage, while Ohio State (4-0) hit at a .403 clip.

The defending national champions almost doubled-up the Cardinal in total kills (44 to 26). Senior opposite Miles Johnson paced the Buckeyes with 13 kills on .476 hitting, while reigning AVCA National Player of the Week Nicolas Szerszen finished with 12 kills, four aces and three blocks.

Stanford did hold the edge in blocks, 9.0-7.0, led by freshman middle Stephen Moye’s six. Sophomore opposite Matt Klassen was in on five blocks for the Cardinal, while redshirt junior Kevin Rakestraw totaled three.

Freshman setter Paul Bischoff recorded 21 assists to go with three digs, two kills and two blocks. Junior libero Evan Enriques finished with a match-high seven digs. Redshirt senior outside hitter Gabriel Vega added four kills on 10 errorless swings.

Ohio State posted four aces, but committed 21 service errors. Klassen and redshirt junior Colin McCall put down aces for Stanford, which faltered 12 times at the line.

Stanford and Ohio State will meet for round two on Saturday, Jan. 14. Action will begin at 7 p.m. PT in Burnham Pavilion. Admission is free.