Men’s Volleyball: Ohio State drops to Loyola Chicago and No. 14 Purdue Fort Wayne on road trip

Emma Baugher
Sun, 23 Feb 2020 15:32:35 +0000
News, Sports, Volleyball, Austin Gerwig, Buckeyes, buckeyes men’s volleyball, Ethan Talley, Jake Hanes, kevin burch, Kyle Skinner, Luke Lentin, Luke Meidel, Martin Lallemand, Matt Tompkins, men's volleyball, ohio state, Ohio state men's volleyball, Ohio State volleyball, Parker Mikesch, reese devilbiss, Samuel Clark, Sean Ryan, Tyler Alter

Ohio State outside hitter Martin Lallemand (6), freshman middle blocker Samuel Clark (17) and freshman setter Michael Wright (3) prepare to block the shot from McKendree during the Ohio State-McKendree game Feb.15. Ohio State won the match 3-0.Credit: Mackenzie Shanklin | Lantern Reporter

With two losses on the road this weekend, Ohio State men’s volleyball has now lost five of its past six contests.

Ohio State (9-6, 1-3 MIVA) dropped to Loyola Chicago (5-10, 2-3) Friday and No. 14 Purdue Fort Wayne (8-4, 3-2) Saturday, losing both matches in four sets.

Game 1

Despite statistical advantages in kills and assists, Ohio State dropped three of four sets (25-20, 21-25, 25-20, and 25-22) against Loyola in a game that saw a combined 33 service errors.

After a first-set loss, the Buckeyes bounced back to claim set two with a .571 kill pace. Ohio State junior outside hitter Martin Lallemand, senior outside hitter Reese Devilbiss and freshman middle blocker Samuel Clark earned 14 total kills in the second set.?

Ohio State made six service errors and four attacking errors in the third set, allowing the Wolves to claim another set.?

While Loyola had 49 team kills and 48 assists for the match, Ohio State had 53 kills and 52 assists.?

Defensively, Loyola took over courtesy of 10 team blocks. Ohio State had just four.

Loyola freshman outside hitter Cole Schlothauer led his team with 17 total kills for the night, topping Lallemand’s 15.

Game 2

Late struggles were the tale for the Buckeyes against Purdue Fort Wayne, as three consecutive losing sets doomed them Saturday night (19-25, 25-23, 25-20, 25-17).

It was a hot start for the Buckeyes, as they controlled the first set 25-19 behind nine combined swings from Devilbiss and Lallemand.?

The team had the second set in hand before Purdue Fort Wayne erased a 22-19 deficit with a 6-1 run to seal the set 25-23.?

The Buckeyes were within striking distance once again in the third set, down just 21-20 before a 4-0 run to close out the set that gave Purdue Fort Wayne the 25-20 edge.

Despite five fourth-set kills from Ohio State redshirt freshman opposite hitter Tim Baldwin, the final set was the most lopsided of the night in favor of Loyola.

A 25-17 win in set four sealed it for the Mastodons and sent the Buckeyes home from their weekend trip with an 0-2 record.?

Ohio State will head to Illinois to challenge Quincy next Friday at 8 p.m.