Ohio State men’s volleyball will face defending national champion Long Beach State, national runner-up UCLA and fellow Volley Four participant BYU in 2019, according to its schedule release.
Altogether, the Buckeyes will play 19 matches against programs represented in VolleyMob’s Way-Too-Early 2019 Men’s Volleyball Power Rankings.
Schedule in Place for 2019 Season
🌰 28 regular season matches
🌰 15 home matches
🌰 14 MIVA matches
🌰 14 non-conference matches
🌰 unlimited excitement!MORE⤵️https://t.co/Y8oRAmTUdj#GoBucks
— OSU Men's Volleyball (@OhioStateMVB) August 16, 2018
The regular season starts with home matches against Charleston and 19th-ranked Penn State, before the Buckeyes hit the road to challenge 5th-ranked BYU and 14th-ranked Stanford. After returning home to meet 17th-ranked George Mason and Erskine, Ohio State begins MIVA action at 16th-ranked Ball State.
In addition to challenging nonconference matchups against 9th-ranked UC Santa Barbara, top-ranked Long Beach State, 4th-ranked UCLA and 12th-ranked USC, the Buckeyes will tangle with ranked league foes in 13th-ranked Fort Wayne, 10th-ranked Loyola Chicago and 6th-ranked Lewis and RV Lindenwood.
Ohio State, which has won 3 consecutive MIVA tournament championships, returns four starters and its libero this season, including AVCA All-America honorable mention setter Sanil Thomas, middle blocker Blake Leeson and right side hitter Jake Hanes.
Thomas ran the top MIVA offense, distributing 1,309 assists (11.28 per set). Leeson led the team in blocks, notching 100 (19 solo, 81 assists) for a 0.86 blocks per set average. He also contributed 190 kills (1.64 per set) and hit .494 on the year. Hanes had the second-highest kill total on the squad, recording 400 kills (3.67 per set), while hitting .273.
The Buckeyes compiled a 25-6 record overall and an 11-3 mark in MIVA action. After securing national championships in 2016 and 2017, Ohio State fell shy of a 3-peat with a 4-set loss to eventual national champion Long Beach State in the semifinal round.
Key Matches:
- January 10, at #5 BYU (Volley Four)
- February 8, vs. #9 UC Santa Barbara (Big West Quarterfinals)
- February 9, at #1 Long Beach State (National Champions, Big West Champions)
- February 21, vs. #6 Lewis (MIVA Semifinals)
- February 23, vs. #10 Loyola Chicago (MIVA Championship)
- March 8, at #4 UCLA (National Runner-Up)
- March 9, at #12 USC (Big West Quarterfinals)
- March 29, at #10 Loyola Chicago (MIVA Championship)
- March 30, at #6 Lewis
Full Schedule:
| Date | Matchup | Location | Time |
| Friday, January 4 | Charleston at Ohio State | Columbus, Ohio | 7 p.m. |
| Saturday, January 5 | Penn State at Ohio State | Columbus, Ohio | 7 p.m. |
| Thursday, January 10 | Ohio State at BYU | Provo, Utah | 9 p.m. |
| Saturday, January 12 | Ohio State at Stanford | Palo Alto, Calif. | 10 p.m. |
| Friday, January 18 | George Mason at Ohio State | Columbus, Ohio | 7 p.m. |
| Saturday, January 19 | Erskine at Ohio State | Columbus, Ohio | TBA |
| Saturday, January 26 | Ohio State at Ball State | Muncie, Ind. | 7 p.m. |
| Friday, February 1 | Saint Francis at Ohio State | Columbus, Ohio | 7 p.m. |
| Saturday, February 2 | Lincoln Memorial at Ohio State | Columbus, Ohio | 7 p.m. |
| Tuesday, February 5 | Ohio State at Purdue Fort Wayne | Fort Wayne, Ind. | 7 p.m. |
| Friday, February 8 | Ohio State vs. UC Santa Barbara | Long Beach, Calif. | 7 p.m. |
| Saturday, February 9 | Ohio State at Long Beach State | Long Beach, Calif. | 10 p.m. |
| Friday, February 15 | Ohio State at Lindenwood | Saint Charles, Mo. | 8 p.m. |
| Saturday, February 16 | Ohio State at Quincy | Quincy, Ill. | 8 p.m. |
| Thursday, February 21 | Lewis at Ohio State | Columbus, Ohio | 7 p.m. |
| Saturday, February 23 | Loyola Chicago at Ohio State | Columbus, Ohio | 7 p.m. |
| Friday, March 1 | McKendree at Ohio State | Columbus, Ohio | 7 p.m. |
| Sunday, March 3 | McKendree at Ohio State | Columbus, Ohio | 2 p.m. |
| Friday, March 8 | Ohio State at UCLA | Los Angeles, Calif. | 8 p.m. |
| Saturday, March 9 | Ohio State at USC | Los Angeles, Calif. | 11 p.m. |
| Friday, March 15 | Lees-Mcrae at Ohio State | Columbus, Ohio | 7 p.m. |
| Tuesday, March 19 | Ohio State at Penn State | State College, Pa. | 7 p.m. |
| Friday, March 22 | Lindenwood at Ohio State | Columbus, Ohio | 7 p.m. |
| Saturday, March 23 | Quincy at Ohio State | Columbus, Ohio | 7 p.m. |
| Friday, March 29 | Ohio State at Loyola Chicago | Chicago, Ill. | 8 p.m. |
| Saturday, March 30 | Ohio State at Lewis | Romeoville, Ill. | 8 p.m. |
| Thursday, April 4 | Purdue Fort Wayne at Ohio State | Columbus, Ohio | 7 p.m. |
| Saturday, April 6 | Ball State at Ohio State | Columbus, Ohio | 7 p.m. |
| Saturday, April 13 | MIVA Quarterfinals | TBA | TBD |
| Wednesday, April 17 | MIVA Semifinals | TBA | TBD |
| Saturday, April 20 | MIVA Finals | TBA | TBD |
Leave a Reply