#19 Ohio State vs. Maryland
- Live Stats: GameTracker
- Video Broadcast: BTN Plus
On Wednesday, the Maryland Terrapins, who entered the game with just 1 Big Ten victory, upset the #19 Ohio State Buckeyes, who are the only team in the country this season to beat the Nebraska Cornhuskers – presumptive favorites for this year’s NCAA title.
The Terrapins won’t have to wait long to validate the result, and the Buckeyes similarly will be seeking revenge on Friday as the two teams play again in Columbus on Friday evening (7:00 Eastern Time).
This is a rare opportunity in the sport, especially at the collegiate level. There are a number of different factors that play into the outcome of any given volleyball match, but on a quick turnaround like this, coaches have the opportunity to re-group their team, fix some quick problems, and play again immediately in relatively similar circumstances.
Prior to Wednesday’s match, Ohio State head coach Geoff Carlston initially said “there’s not going to be a ton of changes” between the back-to-back games, but then almost caught himself and followed up with “or there could be a lot of changes,” depending on how Wednesday’s match goes. Wednesday’s match didn’t go very well for the Buckeyes, who historically have had trouble with road games against Maryland, and so now he and his squad will have the chance to make those changes.
Maryland head coach Steve Aird was unavailable for specific comment, but in his weekly press conference, he did address the back-to-back approach:
“We know it’ll be a challenge, but we’re just trying to get our minds right and rest enough to be ready to go on Friday. It’s a really tough turnaround, and it won’t be an easy match. The coaches will get together and make sure our game plan is set and that we do what we need to do to prepare the team.”
Ohio State faced the same team in back-to-back games twice last season: once out of conference when they beat Florida State 3-2 and 3-1 on back-to-back days; and the other time in-conference against Penn State where they lost back-to-back 3-0 and 3-1 on a similar Wednesday-Friday schedule.
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