Ohio State Set For Midweek Outing At Rutgers

Press Release courtesy of Ohio State Athletics

The Ohio State women’s volleyball team wraps up its season series with Rutgers on the road Wednesday night. First serve of the midweek Big Ten matchup is set for 7 p.m. ET.

WEEKLY BASICS

Wednesday, Nov. 8 | 7 p.m. ET | Piscataway, N.J. | College Avenue Gym

Ohio State (13-12, 6-8 B1G) at Rutgers (5-21, 0-14 B1G)

Live Stats | Live Stream

HISTORY WITH THE SCARLET KNIGHTS

The Buckeyes lead the series with the Scarlet Knights, 8-1. The teams first met in 1978 and Ohio State has won the last six matches in straight sets. Rutgers’ only triumph in the series was back in 1981.

Wednesday’s contest will be the second meeting of the season between the Buckeyes and Scarlet Knights. When Rutgers made the trip to Columbus on Oct. 7, Ohio State got the job done in three. Ashley Wenz had a career-high 18 kills and Hannah Gruensfelder served up four aces, a career mark.

HUGHES DISHES 3,000

On Oct. 27, junior setter Taylor Hughes became the eighth player in Ohio State history to surpass 3,000 career assists. She currently ranks eighth in the history books with 3,143 assists. She has dished double-digit helpers in every match this season.

BUCKEYES IN THE B1G

Hannah Gruensfelder bumped her average to 4.54 digs per set, which is good for third in the league. Taylor Hughes is also representing the Buckeyes with 10.25 assists per set (11th) while Lauren Witte averages 1.13 blocks per set (7th) and has a .330 hitting percentage (13th). As a team, Ohio State stands fourth in digs per set (14.92).

SCOUTING RUTGERS

The Scarlet Knights are having a tough time in Big Ten play as they look for their first conference win of the 2017 campaign. The squad has lost 12 B1G contests in three sets. Rutgers has dropped its last 15 matches, its last victory coming during its final non-conference match on Sept. 16.

CARLSTON APPROACHING 400 WINS

Head coach Geoff Carlston has been in charge of three programs during his 18-year career, having spent the last 10 seasons at the helm for Ohio State. Carlston’s amassed 399 career wins and is on track to check off No. 400 this season.

UPSET ALERT: BADGERS FALL IN FIVE

Ohio State erased a 2-0 deficit and rallied to take down No. 8 Wisconsin in a heart-pounding five-set thriller on Nov. 3. The Buckeyes knocked off the Badgers for the first time since 2015. The last time the Scarlet & Gray bested the Badgers in Madison was on Sept. 29, 2012.

COUNT IT UP

During the last four matches, senior outside hitter Luisa Schirmer has tallied 12-plus kills in each outing. She is averaging 3.86 kills and 3.93 points per set during the quartet.

BACK ON TELEVISION

The Big Ten Network has picked up Ohio State’s match against Nebraska on Nov. 17 in St. John Arena. It will be the sixth televised match of the season for the Buckeyes.